Washington (May 22, 2003) -- It may come as little surprise, but a recent Deloitte & Touche survey found that the tax reductions senior tax executives believe will provide the greatest stimulus to their firms are not those being considered by Congress.
Among the key stimuli considered least by Congress are international tax reform, reduction of corporate rates, repeal of the alternative minimum tax, and reduction in the tax on repatriated earnings.
Deloitte & Touche recently surveyed 295 senior tax executives from firms of a variety of sizes and industries to gain their insights into the impact that tax changes are likely to have on their firms' business plans.
“To me the key finding was that there is an apparent disconnect between what tax directors worry about as they do their daily job of managing tax liability versus what Congress is worried about,” said Clint Stretch, principal and director of tax policy at Deloitte & Touche. “Congress tends to work on tax cuts that a small, but vocal group think are important and has more trouble on cuts that enjoy a broad but not passionate base.”
The survey also found that:
- 60 percent of senior tax executives preferred a reduction in corporate income tax rates as the best way to stimulate economic growth
- Nearly 60 percent of senior tax executives said that their firm would be very or extremely likely to increase investment or business activity over the next 24 months if dividend taxes were reduced
- Less than 40 percent of tax executives said that their firm would be very or extremely likely to increase capital investment or business activity over the next 24 months if their preferred tax reduction were enacted
Deloitte & Touche's PeerViews is a new, monthly survey series on current tax policy issues that gathers the collective insights of senior tax executives.-- Seth Fineberg
