Small Business Owners Support Corporate Tax Reform

Thinking about running for office this year? If you’re serious about winning and making a difference, real tax reforms better be a big part of your platform. Until we fix these issues, and the problems or corporate personhood and money in our elections, not much else anyone does in Congress or state assemblies is going to matter much at all.

The following is the executive summary of a poll conducted by the  American Sustainable Business Council, Main Street Alliance, and Small Business Majority. As a small business owner myself, let me just add that I agree 100%.

“Small businesses are the backbone of our economy and create the vast majority of new jobs, yet as these poll findings make clear, small business owners believe large corporations and wealthy Americans pay less than their fair share of taxes. Poll respondents support specific reforms to address the problem.

An overwhelming 90% of small business owners say big corporations use loopholes to avoid taxes that small businesses have to pay—and 92% say big corporations’ use of such loopholes is a problem. When asked specifically if they think U.S. multinational corporations’ use of accounting loopholes to shift profits to offshore subsidiaries to avoid taxes is a problem, 91% of respondents agreed, with 55% saying it is a very serious problem.

A majority of small business owners (58%) said households with incomes of more than $1 million a year pay less than their fair share in taxes. And 57% of respondents believe individuals earning more than $1 million annually should pay a higher tax rate on the income over $1 million. Moreover, a 51% majority of small business owners polled believe Congress should let tax cuts on taxable income over $250,000 a year expire as scheduled on December 31, 2012 (40% said they should be extended).

Small business owners strongly disapprove of the special “carried interest” loophole that gives hedge fund managers a big break on their taxes—81% of owners favor hedge fund managers being taxed at the ordinary income tax rate, with a top bracket currently set at 35%, rather than the 15% capital gains rate they now pay.

Fifty percent of the business owners in this nationwide poll identified as Republican or independents leaning Republican, 32% as Democrat or independents leaning Democratic and 15% as independents (not leaning toward either party).”

To view the complete report, click here (pdf). Hat tip to my friend Ted, host of the blog, jobsanger, for bringing this to my attention.