Organizations representing 95 percent of America’s businesses – including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Federation of Independent Business – sent a letter to the House Ways and Means and Senate Finance Committees opposing a corporate-only approach to tax reform.  The letter calls on Congress to act on comprehensive tax reform.

In the letter the organizations state:
 

“Every day, nearly 70 million Americans wake up and go to work at a firm organized as something other than a C corporation. These ‘flow-through’ businesses, structured as S corporations, partnerships, LLCs, or sole proprietorships, contribute more to our national income and our job base than all the publicly-traded corporations combined.”

 
The letter goes on to state that reports about the Administration’s approach to tax reform suggest the plan would put America’s small businesses at a serious economic disadvantage:
 

“Despite this economic importance, the published reports indicate the Treasury Department intends to pursue a tax ‘reform’ process that would benefit C Corporations at the expense of flow-through businesses. According to recent estimates by Ernst & Young, this approach to tax reform could increase taxes on flow-through job creators of all sizes by at least $27 billion per year, making it more difficult for them to raise capital and hire new employees.
 
“It is hard to see how a significant tax hike on a large segment of this country’s employers will improve the job market or make U.S. businesses more competitive.”

The call for a comprehensive approach mirrors that of Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp (R-MI).  Chairman Camp has said he wants comprehensive tax reform that lowers the top corporate and individual rates to 25 percent while streamlining the tax code in a way that will put America on the path toward private sector job creation and economic growth.  He has stated repeatedly that comprehensive reform of the corporate and individual rates together provides the greatest opportunity to create a climate that fosters job growth – regardless of the size or structure of a business.  Independent economists verified that this type of tax reform, when coupled with spending restraint – as in the House GOP Budget – could lead to the creation of an additional 1 million jobs next year alone.