Don
04-21-2004, 04:05 PM
well since the last newsletter sparked a much heated debate, I figured I would post another and see what happens.
VOICE e-newsletter for Don Frantz
Welcome to the April 19, 2004, edition of VOICE: Volunteers Organized to Influence Congress and Elections. This e-newsletter is sent to NFIB members twice monthly. Look to NFIB to keep you informed about what's happening in Washington and the states, and how YOU can shape the politics and policy that affect small businesses.
MAIN STREET MESSAGE
NFIB Names "Top 10 Wish List to End Small-Business Tax Traumas"
As millions of Americans filed their federal income-tax returns before last week's "Tax Day" deadline, NFIB released its "Top 10 Wish List to End Small-Business Tax Traumas."
10. Reduce the overall tax burden. While our economy is getting stronger and job creation is on the rise, much work remains to be done so small business can realize true, meaningful and lasting tax-relief.
9. Establish a standard home-office deduction. Many business owners do not take home-office deductions because of the complexity of the paperwork involved in doing so. The complicated record keeping now required by the IRS would be removed if a standard deduction for home-based businesses were allowed.
8. Establish Social Security Personal Retirement Accounts (PRAs). Individually controlled PRAs should be a major part of any Social Security reform plan.
7. Reduce unemployment insurance taxes. While unemployment insurance is essentially a state-level program, small businesses are hit with a double whammy because unemployment taxes are collected at both the state and federal levels.
6. Provide full deductibility of health costs for the self-employed. The tax code prevents entrepreneurs from deducting health-care costs from the wage base for self-employment taxes (Social Security and Medicare).
5. Allow an automobile deduction for small business. Congress should update the law to reflect the changes in the marketplace and allow small-business owners to expense vehicles used for legitimate business-related purposes.
4. Repeal the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT). The AMT forces taxpayers to calculate their taxes twice, and then pay the larger amount. While only one in 150 taxpayers now pays the AMT, that number is expected to rise to one in 14 by 2007.
3. Simplify the overly complex tax code. Today, small-business owners face over 200 IRS requirements and 80-85 percent rely on professional tax practitioners to prepare their tax return. Tax simplification remains high on the small-business priority list.
2. Raise the Section 179 expensing limit and make relief permanent. The expensing-limit of $100,000 will expire and return to its previous level of $25,000 after 2005 unless Congress passes additional legislation.
And the #1 wish
1. Make the 2001 tax-cuts permanent. The sooner the president's tax cuts are made permanent, the sooner small-business owners can feel even more confident in planning further expansion and job creation. Two specific tax-relief provisions NFIB is pushing to make permanent include: lowering the personal income tax rates and burying the death tax.
VOICEBOX
Tell your U.S. House representatives to support the American Jobs Creation Act of 2003 (H.R. 2896) which will benefit small-business owners by making much-needed changes to the tax code.
FEDERAL FOCUS
Tell Your U.S. Senators to Vote Against Harmful Amendments
NO to the Harkin Amendment
When the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) was passed in the 1930s, Congress left it to the Department of Labor (DOL) to create regulations that define which jobs are eligible for overtime and which are exempt. The resulting regulations are unclear and outdated. Clarifying these rules is a much-needed reform, especially for small-business owners. In order to update and simplify these regulations, the DOL in 2003 proposed changes to reform the "white collar" overtime regulations. The unions falsely claim that the Bush Administration wants to kill overtime for millions of workers, and pro-union U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin (Iowa) is trying to block the DOL from updating and simplifying overtime rules. A vote on this issue is expected during the next three weeks. Contact your senators now and urge them to vote AGAINST the Harkin amendment.
NO to the Boxer-Kennedy Amendment
Tell your U.S. Senators to vote against Sen. Barbara Boxer (Calif.) and Sen. Ted Kennedy's (Mass.) amendment to increase the federal minimum wage by $1.85 over two years. NFIB opposes any increase in the minimum wage. Mandatory wage increases hurt not only small businesses, but their employees as well. A vote on this issue is expected during the next few weeks. Contact your senators now and urge them to vote AGAINST the Boxer-Kennedy amendment.
Go to http://www.NFIB.com/getinvolved for contact information.
STATE SPOTLIGHT
Register to Vote and Utilize Other Helpful Political Resources on NFIB's New Politics Webpage
This month, the NFIB political team unveiled a new tool to help NFIB members and small-business owners stay active in politics. http://www.NFIB.com/politics provides a number of resources to help you stay up-to-date on current campaigns as well as links that allow you to register to vote, request an absentee ballot or find your polling location on Election Day. A "How-To" section fills you in on how to get out the local vote, get out the vote at work, deal with the media, write your local paper, choose the best candidate, and many other helpful tips. The site also provides information on running for office and information regarding NFIB-endorsed candidates.
NFIB believes supporting pro-small-business candidates is crucial to defending free enterprise in America. One of the best ways to impact public policy is to elect and re-elect those candidates that support small-business issues. Through extensive research of over 7,500 candidates, voter education on candidates' issue positions, voter registration drives, endorsement of pro-small-business candidates, contributions to pro-small-business campaigns, issue advocacy to the business community, GOTV (get out the vote) efforts and the political activism of NFIB members, NFIB helps elect those candidates who support you, America's small-business owners.
Utilize NFIB's resources to develop your political activism and support candidates working for small business. Visit http://www.NFIB.com/politics today!
GRASSROOTS POWER
Register to Attend the NFIB National Small Business Summit: June 16-18, 2004
Main Street meets Capitol Hill every two years at the NFIB National Small Business Summit in Washington, D.C. Held since 1998, the event brings together America's most politically active entrepreneurs and key congressional, administration and policy leaders. For three days, policymakers see first-hand the importance of small business to the economy, and America's entrepreneurs have an opportunity to meet their lawmakers face-to-face and affect the policies that impact their businesses. For more information or to register to attend, visit http://www.NFIB.com/summit.
Visit http://www.NFIB.com/voice to download the PDF version of this newsletter or read archived editions of VOICE.
Make the VOICE of small business even louder by forwarding this e-newsletter to your friends, family, and business associates! Tell them to visit http://www.NFIB.com/ for the latest small-business news!
VOICE e-newsletter for Don Frantz
Welcome to the April 19, 2004, edition of VOICE: Volunteers Organized to Influence Congress and Elections. This e-newsletter is sent to NFIB members twice monthly. Look to NFIB to keep you informed about what's happening in Washington and the states, and how YOU can shape the politics and policy that affect small businesses.
MAIN STREET MESSAGE
NFIB Names "Top 10 Wish List to End Small-Business Tax Traumas"
As millions of Americans filed their federal income-tax returns before last week's "Tax Day" deadline, NFIB released its "Top 10 Wish List to End Small-Business Tax Traumas."
10. Reduce the overall tax burden. While our economy is getting stronger and job creation is on the rise, much work remains to be done so small business can realize true, meaningful and lasting tax-relief.
9. Establish a standard home-office deduction. Many business owners do not take home-office deductions because of the complexity of the paperwork involved in doing so. The complicated record keeping now required by the IRS would be removed if a standard deduction for home-based businesses were allowed.
8. Establish Social Security Personal Retirement Accounts (PRAs). Individually controlled PRAs should be a major part of any Social Security reform plan.
7. Reduce unemployment insurance taxes. While unemployment insurance is essentially a state-level program, small businesses are hit with a double whammy because unemployment taxes are collected at both the state and federal levels.
6. Provide full deductibility of health costs for the self-employed. The tax code prevents entrepreneurs from deducting health-care costs from the wage base for self-employment taxes (Social Security and Medicare).
5. Allow an automobile deduction for small business. Congress should update the law to reflect the changes in the marketplace and allow small-business owners to expense vehicles used for legitimate business-related purposes.
4. Repeal the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT). The AMT forces taxpayers to calculate their taxes twice, and then pay the larger amount. While only one in 150 taxpayers now pays the AMT, that number is expected to rise to one in 14 by 2007.
3. Simplify the overly complex tax code. Today, small-business owners face over 200 IRS requirements and 80-85 percent rely on professional tax practitioners to prepare their tax return. Tax simplification remains high on the small-business priority list.
2. Raise the Section 179 expensing limit and make relief permanent. The expensing-limit of $100,000 will expire and return to its previous level of $25,000 after 2005 unless Congress passes additional legislation.
And the #1 wish
1. Make the 2001 tax-cuts permanent. The sooner the president's tax cuts are made permanent, the sooner small-business owners can feel even more confident in planning further expansion and job creation. Two specific tax-relief provisions NFIB is pushing to make permanent include: lowering the personal income tax rates and burying the death tax.
VOICEBOX
Tell your U.S. House representatives to support the American Jobs Creation Act of 2003 (H.R. 2896) which will benefit small-business owners by making much-needed changes to the tax code.
FEDERAL FOCUS
Tell Your U.S. Senators to Vote Against Harmful Amendments
NO to the Harkin Amendment
When the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) was passed in the 1930s, Congress left it to the Department of Labor (DOL) to create regulations that define which jobs are eligible for overtime and which are exempt. The resulting regulations are unclear and outdated. Clarifying these rules is a much-needed reform, especially for small-business owners. In order to update and simplify these regulations, the DOL in 2003 proposed changes to reform the "white collar" overtime regulations. The unions falsely claim that the Bush Administration wants to kill overtime for millions of workers, and pro-union U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin (Iowa) is trying to block the DOL from updating and simplifying overtime rules. A vote on this issue is expected during the next three weeks. Contact your senators now and urge them to vote AGAINST the Harkin amendment.
NO to the Boxer-Kennedy Amendment
Tell your U.S. Senators to vote against Sen. Barbara Boxer (Calif.) and Sen. Ted Kennedy's (Mass.) amendment to increase the federal minimum wage by $1.85 over two years. NFIB opposes any increase in the minimum wage. Mandatory wage increases hurt not only small businesses, but their employees as well. A vote on this issue is expected during the next few weeks. Contact your senators now and urge them to vote AGAINST the Boxer-Kennedy amendment.
Go to http://www.NFIB.com/getinvolved for contact information.
STATE SPOTLIGHT
Register to Vote and Utilize Other Helpful Political Resources on NFIB's New Politics Webpage
This month, the NFIB political team unveiled a new tool to help NFIB members and small-business owners stay active in politics. http://www.NFIB.com/politics provides a number of resources to help you stay up-to-date on current campaigns as well as links that allow you to register to vote, request an absentee ballot or find your polling location on Election Day. A "How-To" section fills you in on how to get out the local vote, get out the vote at work, deal with the media, write your local paper, choose the best candidate, and many other helpful tips. The site also provides information on running for office and information regarding NFIB-endorsed candidates.
NFIB believes supporting pro-small-business candidates is crucial to defending free enterprise in America. One of the best ways to impact public policy is to elect and re-elect those candidates that support small-business issues. Through extensive research of over 7,500 candidates, voter education on candidates' issue positions, voter registration drives, endorsement of pro-small-business candidates, contributions to pro-small-business campaigns, issue advocacy to the business community, GOTV (get out the vote) efforts and the political activism of NFIB members, NFIB helps elect those candidates who support you, America's small-business owners.
Utilize NFIB's resources to develop your political activism and support candidates working for small business. Visit http://www.NFIB.com/politics today!
GRASSROOTS POWER
Register to Attend the NFIB National Small Business Summit: June 16-18, 2004
Main Street meets Capitol Hill every two years at the NFIB National Small Business Summit in Washington, D.C. Held since 1998, the event brings together America's most politically active entrepreneurs and key congressional, administration and policy leaders. For three days, policymakers see first-hand the importance of small business to the economy, and America's entrepreneurs have an opportunity to meet their lawmakers face-to-face and affect the policies that impact their businesses. For more information or to register to attend, visit http://www.NFIB.com/summit.
Visit http://www.NFIB.com/voice to download the PDF version of this newsletter or read archived editions of VOICE.
Make the VOICE of small business even louder by forwarding this e-newsletter to your friends, family, and business associates! Tell them to visit http://www.NFIB.com/ for the latest small-business news!