Free Site Registration


Small Businesses Want Debt Ceiling Fix as Congress Votes

Print
Email
Reprints
Washington, D.C. (January 23, 2013)

By Michael Cohn

The majority of small businesses want a long-term solution to the debt ceiling so the U.S. can pay its bills and the issue does not repeatedly come up for votes in Congress, according to a new survey.

The poll, by the advocacy group Small Business Majority, found a 55 percent majority of small business owners polled believe there should be a long-term solution, versus a 36 percent minority who disagreed.

The poll came the same day as a vote in Congress to temporarily suspend the debt limit for nearly four months. The House passed a bill Wednesday by a 285 to 144 vote that would raise the debt ceiling. The bill would require lawmakers to pass a budget by the April 15 deadline or risk having their pay withheld until the beginning of the next term of Congress in 2015. The bill now goes to the Senate. Senate Democrat leaders have indicated they would vote for the Republican-led bill, and President Obama plans to sign it into law.

Senator Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., said on Meet the Press on Sunday that Democrats have always intended to pass a budget, and they plan to include tax reform in the next budget.

“In our budget that we will pass, we will have tax reform, which many of my Republican colleagues like, but it’s going to include revenues,” he said.

The House measure would temporarily suspend the debt ceiling limit for four months, at which time Congress would once again debate increasing the limit.

The findings of the Small Business Majority poll buttress previous opinion polling that found small business owners are more interested in fixing the economy than wrangling over the deficit. That poll found that by a 5:4 ratio, small employers believe a plan to create more jobs is the most important task for Congress and the president over the next year, compared to a plan to reducing the deficit.

“Small businesses clearly do not want Congress to revisit the debt ceiling debate over and over again,” said Small Business Majority CEO John Arensmeyer in a statement. “Small employers want a lasting solution to our country’s fiscal challenges so that they have the economic certainty they need to thrive. With a long-term debt ceiling solution in place, lawmakers will be able to focus on small businesses top priority—job creation.”

0 Comments

Be the first to comment on this post using the section below.

Add Your Comments...

Already Registered?

If you have already registered to Accounting Today, please use the form below to login. When completed you will immeditely be directed to post a comment.

 

Follow Accounting Today
Advertisement
Advertisement

Jason Marx on the Challenges and Opportunities Facing Accountants

June 17, 2013

CCH Small Firm Services president Jason Marx talks about the challenges confronting small accounting firms, including regulatory and tax compliance, technology adoption, and do-it-yourself software.

Jennifer Warawa on the 'On-Demand' Accountant

June 14, 2013

Jennifer Warawa, VP of partner programs and channel sales at Sage, discusses how accountants need to communicate more frequently with clients so they become more of an "on-demand" resource.

George Farrah on the Challenges and Opportunities Facing Accountants

June 14, 2013

Bloomberg BNA executive editor of tax and accounting George Farrah discusses how accountants today are dealing with the economy, technology, globalization and practice management.

Amit Jain on Three Key Trends in Accounting

June 13, 2013

Amit Jain of ADP Small Business Services discusses how the accounting firm of tomorrow will be different from accounting firms today.

Advertisement

SLIDE SHOW

What’s in the Lease Accounting Exposure Draft?

June 18, 2013

A quick guide to FASB’s proposed standards from Bloomberg BNA.

20 Trends to Watch

June 16, 2013

New areas of change that accountants should be on the lookout for.

Protecting Clients from Tax-Related Identity Theft

May 31, 2013

Tax-related identity theft is a continuing problem, and a trustworthy tax preparer is an important part of the solution.

10 Simple Revenue Boosters to Start Now

May 28, 2013

Are your prospects choosing another accounting firm just because of price? There are ways to boost your image to earn a premium fee and leave low-price competitors behind.

Tax Season by the Numbers

May 22, 2013

The IRS recently released statistics covering the year to May 10, 2013.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement