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WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Small business owners see corporate tax loopholes and the shifting of U.S. profits to offshore tax havens as serious problems, according to a new independent national poll. Small business owners think big corporations and the wealthy don’t pay their fair share of taxes, the poll shows. They support increasing taxes on millionaire incomes, letting high-end tax cuts expire, and closing the carried interest loophole that gives hedge fund managers big tax breaks.

These findings from a scientific nationwide survey of small business owners released by the American Sustainable Business Council, Main Street Alliance and Small Business Majority are summarized below with links to the full report.

“I’ve been in business 32 years, and I’m appalled at how big corporations and millionaires have shrunk their taxes,” said Lew Prince, owner of Vintage Vinyl, an independent music store in St. Louis, MO. “Ingrates like Amazon wouldn’t even exist without the Internet, which grew out of government research. The least big corporations and their executives could do is pay their fair share for the roads, ports, education, research, public safety and everything else that tax dollars buy.”

“When big corporations use loopholes and tax havens to avoid paying taxes, they’re robbing our country of the resources we need to invest in our future,” said Aimee McQuilkin, owner of Betty’s Divine, a clothing boutique in Missoula, MT and Montana Small Business Alliance member. “If you want to fly the American flag outside your corporate headquarters, you should be paying your way.”

“We need a Buffett Rule for wealthy individuals and a GE Rule for corporations,” said Scott Klinger, director of tax policy for Business for Shared Prosperity, a partner in the American Sustainable Business Council. “Warren Buffett spotlighted the madness of a tax code that lets him pay a lower rate than his secretary. Likewise, U.S. multinational corporations who shift U.S. profits to offshore tax havens shouldn’t be rewarded with a tax rate below Main Street employers.”

“Small businesses are the backbone of the economy, yet they feel the playing field is tilted in big businesses’ favor and small firms are at a disadvantage when it comes to taxes and corporate loopholes,” said John Arensmeyer, founder and CEO of Small Business Majority. “Our economy needs to work for everyone. Policymakers need to listen to small businesses and level the economic playing field. If they do, we will all benefit from what small businesses can offer.”

Key poll findings include:

Small business owners believe corporate tax loopholes are serious problems: 90 percent say big corporations use loopholes to avoid taxes that small businesses have to pay; 91 percent believe the corporate shifting of U.S. profits offshore to avoid taxes is a problem. 75 percent believe their small business is harmed when big corporations use loopholes. Small business owners believe big corporations and millionaires pay less than their fair share of taxes: 67 percent believe this for big corporations; 58 percent believe this for households with annual incomes over $1 million. Small business owners support tax proposals that raise revenues: 57 percent say millionaires should pay more taxes. 51 percent say tax cuts on annual household income over $250,000 should end. 81 percent favor eliminating the “carried interest” loophole that gives big tax breaks to hedge fund managers. Respondents were politically diverse: 50 percent identified as Republicans, 32 percent Democrats, and 15 percent independents.

Read the report:
http://www.asbcouncil.org/uploads/Taxes_Poll_Report_FINAL.pdf
http://mainstreetalliance.org/5535/poll-taxes/
http://www.smallbusinessmajority.org/small-business-research/downloads/020612_Taxes_Poll_Report.pdf

Poll results are from a scientific national survey of 500 small business owners, commissioned by ASBC, MSA and SBM. The nationwide Internet survey was conducted by Lake Research Partners between December 8, 2011 and January 4, 2012. Margin of error +/- 4.4%.

http://www.asbcouncil.org
http://www.mainstreetalliance.org
http://www.smallbusinessmajority.org

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Poll: Small Business Owners Say Big Businesses, Millionaires Not Paying Fair Share of Taxes