Ohio Secy. of State explains how to start your business

Staff report

BOARDMAN

The startup businesses in Ohio are increasing each year as more people are looking to create their own opportunities in an unreliable job market, state officials say.

The Ohio Secretary of State’s Office had a regional liaison speak to the public Tuesday afternoon about starting businesses in the Buckeye State and the process to do so at the Boardman library branch, 7680 Glenwood Ave.

According to the statistics on the secretary of state’s website, 8,495 businesses started this past August. That is an increase of 983 new entities compared with August 2015.

Between 2010 and 2015, Ohio saw a 21.8 percent increase in new-business filings. These steadily increasing numbers have multiple causes, secretary of state officials said.

Secretary of State Jon Husted has made more than 82 percent of the documents required for filing businesses and entities available online.

Considering half the companies are started online, the move to a mostly internet-based filing has made it much easier for businesses to get their paperwork filed and processed.

In September 2015, the filing costs to start a business were cut by 21 percent, making Ohio the cheapest state in the region to start and maintain a business.

Husted also partnered with Google and made the “Let’s Put Our Cities on the Map” program available, for free, where startups can find online sources that help them promote their business with products such as Google Maps.

To make business filings and any questions Ohio citizens might have a simpler process, Husted created pamphlets with step-by-step instructions and definitions for each business startup.

Startups belong in five categories – partnership, limited liability company (LLC), nonprofit, corporation and sole proprietorship.

Each pamphlet explains the definition of the business, the forms required to start it, any additional information the entrepreneur should need for naming the business, and the resources and addresses the entrepreneur will need to send the filings and begin their business.

The pamphlets are available at all the state’s public libraries or upon request from the secretary of state’s regional representatives.

If any entrepreneurs need additional help, they should go to www.ohiobusinesscentral.com website.