How to ... Stop legislation that hurts your business

Dudley Goodlette has had his fair share of late-night calls from worried business owners.

Goodlette, one of the most effective and long-serving state legislators from Naples, says many bills filed never leave the committee hearings. “I did have a lot of calls from people whose hair was on fire,” he chuckles. Many times, his answer was: “Don't worry, it'll never be heard.”

But sometimes business owners need to be vigilant about legislation that might harm their interests. “It's not hard for someone to make a difference,” Goodlette says.