Missouri Lawmakers are reviewing a bill that would continue to give small businesses a big tax break.
Missouri
legislators are assessing a five-year extension of a bill that incentivizes
small business to create jobs.
The
Big Government Get Off My Back Act, which originated in 2009 and expired in
2014, provides small businesses a tax deduction for new hires.
“I think it helps as far as the equity between what happens
between bigger companies when they add 10 or 20 jobs and the incentives that
they receive,” says Brad Jones, Missouri NFIB state director. “I think it’s
only fair that the smaller businesses get an incentive as well.”
Missouri
Rep. Denny Hoskins, the bill’s founder, says the bill does several things to
help small businesses, including providing small businesses with protection
from unnecessary regulations and fee increases.
“If a small business hires a full-time employee with pay equal
to at least the average county wage where that job is located, the small
business will receive a $10,000 tax deduction,” Hoskins says. “Similarly, if a
small business hires a full-time employee with pay equal to at least the average
county wage where that job is located and pays 50 percent of the health
insurance premium, the small business will receive a $20,000 deduction.”
The
extension proposed by Rep. Hoskins addresses the act as a deduction rather than
a credit, making the claim less cumbersome for the taxpayer.
Each
year, more businesses have taken advantage of the deduction. In 2011, no
businesses took advantage of the tax incentive. Just 10 businesses claimed the
credit in 2012, 95 in 2013 and 196 in 2014. While those figures may seem low,
for small communities, just a few jobs can have a significant impact.
“In a rural community of 500 or 600 people, when one of the
small businesses in town adds one or two jobs it’s kind of a big deal when you
look at the economics of it,” says Jones.
When asked if more businesses are likely to take advantage of
the hiring incentive and claim the tax deduction in 2015, Jones says, “I
certainly hope so because our economy is better. People are hiring more and
will be able to take advantage of the incentive. “
Rep. Hoskins says he expects more businesses to file for the
deduction this year.
