NYC tops list for nation’s worst regulations

The Big Apple is home to even bigger government, according to a new U.S. Chamber of Commerce study ranking the largest cities in terms of burdensome red tape.

The Chamber’s 2014 Regulatory Climate Index, which scores 10 of the nation’s biggest towns, found that business owners in New York City had by far the most onerous regulations with which to contend.

“The largest city in the United States is also the most burdensome for small businesses and entrepreneurs across areas of business regulation,” according to the report, issued Monday.

The study found that Dallas has the most efficient regulatory environment, providing fresh fodder for Texas Gov. Rick Perry, who has been known to tout the Lone Star State’s business-friendly atmosphere — often at the expense of other locales.

California, Perry’s favorite punching bag, is home to two cities that also fared poorly on the Chamber’s report: Los Angeles and San Francisco. Business owners in Chicago also face an unnecessarily challenging set of rules and regulations, according to the list.

Outside of Dallas, the report gives relatively favorable scores to St. Louis, Raleigh, Boston, Atlanta and Detroit.

The study ranked the cities on five categories of regulation: starting a business, dealing with construction permits, registering property, paying taxes and enforcing contracts.

New York, maligned by many conservatives after then-Mayor Michael Bloomberg attempted to enforce a ban on large sodas two years ago, scored poorly across most of the categories.

“Entrepreneurs and small businesses face a number of procedures for compliance and high administrative costs to comply with regulations in the city,” the report concluded. “These regulations are already on top of expensive costs of doing business.”