Small Businesses Believe Wealthy And Big Corporations Not Paying Their Fair Share Of Taxes

Small-business owners don't think big corporations and the wealthy are paying their fair share of taxes, with nine out of 10 small-business owners saying that big corporations use loopholes to avoid the taxes small businesses have to pay, according to a nationwide survey released Monday by the American Sustainable Business Council, Main Street Alliance and Small Business Majority. Ninety-two percent of the small-business owners say corporations using tax loopholes, such as moving U.S. profits to offshore subsidiaries, is a problem, while three out of four say their small business is harmed when big corporations use loopholes to avoid paying taxes.

Sixty-seven percent of small-business owners believe big corporations pay less than their fair share of taxes, while 73 percent believe multinational corporations pay less than their fair share.

"I've been in business 32 years, and I'm appalled at how big corporations and millionaires have shrunk their taxes," Lew Prince, managing partner of Vintage Vinyl, an independent music store in St. Louis, Mo., said in a release from American Sustainable Business Council, Main Street Alliance and Small Business Majority. "Ingrates like Amazon wouldn't even exist without the Internet, which grew out of government research. The least that 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."

Most small-business owners believe not just wealthy corporations, but wealthy individuals, shirk their fair share of taxes. Fifty-eight percent said households with incomes of more than $1 million in annual income pay less than their fair share of taxes, while 57 percent said those people should pay a higher tax rate on income over $1 million.

"We need a Buffett Rule for wealthy individuals and a GE Rule for corporations," Scott Klinger, director of tax policy for Business for Shared Prosperity, a partner in the American Sustainable Business Council, said in a statement. "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 offshore to avoid taxes shouldn't be rewarded with a tax rate below Main Street employers."

Also, a narrow majority of small-business owners believe Congress should let the so-called Bush tax cuts expire as scheduled on Dec, 31, 2012. Fifty-one percent believe these tax cuts on taxable income over $250,000 a year expire, while 40 percent said they should be extended.

Of the business owners surveyed, 50 percent identified themselves as Republican or independents leaning toward Republican, 32 percent as Democrats or independents leaning Democrat and 15 percent as independents not leaning toward either party.

Comments

[AlbionColt]

03:51 AM on 02/13/2012

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[redonthehead]

11:15 AM on 02/08/2012

100% of respondents say that taxes should be raised on someone else.

Would it really matter? Assuming everything is static and nobody changes their habits our deficit would go from $1,400,000,000,000 to something like $1,100,000,000,000. Oh goody somebody put a penny on the train tracks to insolvency.

[mrpotatohead]

01:41 AM on 02/11/2012

Let me take a wild guess. You haven't owned a small business nor have you talked to the small business owners in your community.

Small business owners don't have access to lobbyists and legislators. Wal-Mart does. And it's not just taxes. Big businesses also get other tax breaks when they build that small businesses don't.

Don't believe me? Go talk to a few.

[Roelvdwegen]

02:21 PM on 02/11/2012

Many pennies will eventually stop the train. Reducing the deficit has to start somewhere.

[VPerry24]

05:33 AM on 02/08/2012

Small businesses say the rich need to pay their taxes, the millionaires themselves agree that they need to pay more taxes so what is the problem, OUR CONGRESS! They are blocking this.

[oilfield]

10:18 AM on 02/08/2012

the folks i know that are millionaires pay that 35% top rate.....they think they should pay less, i dont know who the polls are asking?

[LoyalDem4646]

04:29 AM on 02/08/2012

It's about time the truth comes out. When the GOP says they want to protect small business what they actually mean is they want to make the rich richer. It's time for the GOP to disband because it's obvious they don't have the average citizen in mind when they take office. Please, a clean sweep of booting as many of them out of office as possible in 2012.

[HKgovt]

10:16 PM on 02/10/2012

The claim what the Rich pay is nothing and unfair when compared to middle or even low income is FALSE. 2008governmentIncomeTaxRecords

IndividualsIncomes $33,048&up AGI group Top50% Income Taxpayers income group (incomes of $33,048 or more) pays 97.30% of the total income taxes paid. What is fair about making it 99% or even higher?

IndividualsIncomes $380,354&up; AGIgroup Top1%IncomeTaxpayers %of All ReportedAGI=20%; %of AllIncomeTaxPaid38.1%; ActualOverAllTaxRatePaid23.27%. Top1% pays TaxRate797%higher than Bottom50% pay which is 2.594%.

IndividualsIncomes $33,048to$67,280; AGIgroup Top50to25%IncomeTaxpayers; %of All ReportedAGI=22.77%; %of AllIncomeTaxPaid11.26%; ActualOverAllTaxRatePaid6.75%; Top1% pays TaxRate244.7%higher than Top50to25%

Source: http://www.irs.gov/taxstats/indtaxstats/article/0,,id=96679,00.html
See: 08in05tr.xls click first '1986-2008' for document

Math: Top1% TaxPaid / AGI reported $392,149/$1,685,472 =0.23266 or 23.27%

Bottom 50%, TaxPaid / AGI $27,873/$1,074,514=0.02594 or 2.594%

23.266420326 / 2.59400904 = 8.969290 since 1.00 (100%) gives the same number, so 8.969290 - 1 = 7.969290 that is 797% higher

Top50to25% Group AGI reported 7,352,111-5,678,179 = 1,673,932

or 22.77% of all reported AGI 1,673,932 / 7,352,111=0.22768

Tax paid 1,003,639 - 890,614=113,025 or 11.26% of all tax paid
113,025 / 1,003,639 = 0.11261
Tax paid / AGI reported 113,025 / 1,673,932= 6.75% effective tax rate payed

[LoyalDem4646]

04:24 AM on 02/20/2012

That looks good on paper. Tell it to Romney who only paid 15%. The Bush tax cuts made the rich richer and now they feel they are owed more money instead of paying their fair taxes. Hopefully, that will all come to an end in 2012.

[michaelandolga]

10:53 PM on 02/07/2012

When we want to discourage something (e.g., cigarette smoking, gas-guzzling cars, etc.) we tax the heck out of it. So naturally, when Obama wants to shrink the economy, he proposes raising taxes. Works like a champ. Go Barack, Go!

[K August]

11:07 PM on 02/07/2012

Investing in the economy...... the Stimulus (3 million saved/created jobs) and the American Jobs Act is NOT shrinking the economy.

[michaelandolga]

11:44 PM on 02/07/2012

Sorry to burst your bubble,, but the American job market is shrinking. The Labor Force Participation Rate started at 65.7% Obama's first month in office, but is down to 63.7% as of January 2012. The BLS has it right there on their website, have a look.

I realize liberals like to pretend that deficit spending is "investing" in the economy, but it just ain't so. Government - federal, state, local - is incapable of adding so much as a single net, new job to the economy. That's right, government can't even add one job. If it could, it would be a simple matter to have government employ all the formerly unemployed, and...presto! problem solved. Liberals think like that, but unfortunately the world doesn't work like that. :-(

"Teaching Liberals to Think, One Post at a Time."

[oilfield]

10:20 AM on 02/08/2012

there are less jobs today than when he took office....printing almost an extra trillion has side effects like making our dollar weaker....0 stated he wanted to do so so we could export more....he is getting his wish. milk may be 5.00 a gallon but we will be able to sell bulldozers to the middle east.

[sorrytobeakansan]

09:29 AM on 02/08/2012

As a small biz owner, That is insulting in both it's simplicity and dishonesty. Middle America can't pay all the bills and still have the money it needs to power small businesses. Taxing the wealthy or off shore corps when they are reaping record profits is not only simple but also honest. Keep your right wing politics out of the way and the country will come roaring back. Keep protecting the very few and expect more small business failures and job losses. Exactly what the GOP wants.

[michaelandolga]

11:26 PM on 02/08/2012

Kansan, you don't have a clue what you're talking about. We've operated under the Obama re gime for more than 3 years now. Have a look at how the "recovery" is faring: http://www.agorafinancial.com/temp/5min/4yearsNcounting_800px.jpg
If you think that's bad, wait till you see what it looks like next year when the Bush tax cut extensions expire. It'll be "roaring", alright - right into the ground.

[Dosadi]

10:05 PM on 02/07/2012

So if the rich say the wealthy and large corporations are not paying enough in taxes and the small businesses say the same who in the h.ell is the GOP speaking for? I think they are lying to us. They are trying to create an artificial straw man to run against. They claim the President is doing things (taking us down the road to socialism) he is not. They claim the President wants things (to take away our guns) he does not. The GOP knows the people of this country are not interested in their cut and stagnate ideas so they create a false president to run against. They know their base cannot tell the difference between real and fictional when it comes to politics. The GOP is on its last legs. The only question is "Will the democrats show the proper level of humanity and finally put the GOP out of its misery?"

[guy12002us]

07:44 PM on 02/07/2012

DUH. I've been self employed and owned several small businesses for most of my adult life. Every time I hear a politician saying he or she defends small businesses, I want to throw up. For example, if you want to increase employment and investment - increase the tax rate not lower it. Money spent on other's wages and investment back into your business is a deduction - better to invest in your own business than pay it in taxes. The only benefit in lower tax rates is to high earners who are investing with after tax dollars - in other words not a small business owner.

[oilfield]

10:22 AM on 02/08/2012

most investments in your business are depreciated over a long period of time.....better to pay the taxes.

[donk970]

06:26 PM on 02/07/2012

Obviously this survey is flawed because it doesn't show 75% of small business's saying that the big corporations and the wealthy are paying too much in taxes. *sarcasm*

[OutAtFirst]

05:06 PM on 02/07/2012

Still, there's a sizable segment of the population that wouldn't believe it if Jesus Christ himself descended and announced it through a bullhorn.

[mrpotatohead]

01:44 AM on 02/11/2012

Hell, a sizable segment of the God fearing, right-wing, Jesus-loving population wouldn't believe it.

[biabouman41]

04:27 PM on 02/07/2012

Finally, small businesses are starting to see that their problems are not the same as those of big businesses. And benefits to big business is NOT the same as benefits to small business.

And most importantly the the Gas + Oil Party only truly represents very big businesses but use the language which make small businesses think that they are under consideration.

[mrpotatohead]

01:48 AM on 02/11/2012

This certainly matches my experience with the small business owners I talk to.

Small business owners are too busy to go to the state capitol asking for favors and they don't have the cash to hire lobbyists.

Small businesses need to get together to educate the public regarding this. Unfortunately small business owners are often too busy and independent to consider creating a group. They're also not the type (unlike big business) to go looking for handouts and special favors. They just want a level playing field so they can earn a living.

[biabouman41]

08:30 AM on 02/11/2012

agree totally

[Sanders McGrillin]

04:14 PM on 02/07/2012

well duh, the biggest of the big are going to use loopholes & save as much as they can.
thats not anything new
I think they need to re-do the tax code, make it a little more fair between the giant & the little guy again, so maybe we can improve as a whole instead of as a percentage of a very few.

[TexasLawman541]

04:33 PM on 02/07/2012

I would be in favor of rewriting the entire tax code with a flat tax and no loopholes and deductions. It seems that many special interest groups have been able to get their special lopholes while us little folks have none. I would support a 10% across the board tax on all income, including capital gains. Including corporations and small businesses profits. Seems fair whereas a progressive tax is inherently unfair and I believe unconstitutional under the Equal Protection Clause. As for the above article, it states what people believe in polls. What are the facts. Who pays the most Taxes. 48% pay no federal income tax. I am in the other half and my effective tax rate is between 15% and 17%. Thats pretty average and it is too high. It is very wrong to suggest that You Pay X percent but HE must pay Y percent because he makes more. If the percentage is the same, and there are no loopholes, He will pay more in dollars. Thats fair.

[Sanders McGrillin]

05:15 PM on 02/07/2012

that sounds a lot more fair & more simple to me, I bet it would save $$$ overall by simplifying the code in a complete overhaul. We just have to do something to get America going back up again instead of this slow downward spiral we have been traversing instead

[schatsie]

08:49 PM on 02/07/2012

Look at it this way.....Net worth.....Get it, Warren pays .002% of his net worth in taxes and he wants to double it.....I pay 5-10% of my net worth in taxes....every year.... Mitt is one of the good ones he actually pays 1% of his net worth in taxes.....

[donk970]

06:24 PM on 02/07/2012

Corporate taxes should be based on a product of the unemployment rate and gdp. If they are both low the tax rate is low if one but not the other is low the tax rate is in the middle if they are both high the tax rate is high. There should also be a tariff on foreign labor and goods to level the playing field a bit for American workers who are competing with Chinese slave labor.

[joyz41]

02:29 PM on 02/07/2012

This nationwide survey is good news. Small business owners have in the past thought that the pro-corporation positions benefited them. To realize that they have been shafted along with wage earners means they will join wage earners in rectifying this unfair system.

[mek0123]

12:56 PM on 02/07/2012

I find it truly amazing that people believe that in this country (USA), with most Corporations paying no more than an effective tax rate of 6-10%, people are of the belief that taxes should be eliminated for Corporations. They game the system now (hiring well-connected lobbyists) and will simply end up carrying forward credits forever. I believe it was during FDR's tenure when Corporations had a limited life of 40 years MAX! After that, the Corporation ended and was sold off in pieces. Too big to fail is simply too big and when you have chumps running the gov't and dependent on campaign contributions to get re-elected, the contamination has become institutionalized. Citizens United only made permanent the whole problem and it will continue until SCOTUS is changed. Gov't, as it stands now is for the Corporations, by the Corporations, and run by the Corporations. (It used to be people where the word Corporations is used).

[donk970]

06:29 PM on 02/07/2012

Early Americans in the first 100 years or so handled corporations like a sack full of rattle snakes because they didn't want them getting too much power. Of course the TeaPublicans conveniently forget that small detail when they talk about it being unconstitutional and un-american to limit corporations.

[mek0123]

12:45 PM on 02/07/2012

Even Stevie Wonder can see that. They will deny it, but it only ensures their own personal wealth continues upward.................at any cost!

[StopMakingSense2]

12:45 PM on 02/07/2012

What they never realized is republicans don't care any more about then than they do the middle class. If you can't afford to send a lobbyist to Washington to shower them with money you don't exist. Glad you finally woke up!

[mrpotatohead]

01:52 AM on 02/11/2012

I couldn't agree more. Those businesses who can afford lobbyists are playing on a completely different field than those small businesses who cannot. Not only is it important that small business owners learn this, but the public needs to be educated as well.

As small business goes, so goes the U.S.