Dear Senator Daines:
The undersigned business groups strongly support the introduction of your Main Street Tax Certainty Act of 2023, legislation to make permanent the 20-percent deduction for small- and individually-owned businesses (Section 199A).
Your legislation would provide certainty to the millions of S corporations, partnerships and sole proprietorships that rely on the Section 199A deduction to remain competitive both here and overseas.
Individually- and family-owned businesses organized as pass-throughs are the backbone of the American economy. They employ the majority of private-sector workers and represent 95 percent of all businesses. They also make up the economic and social foundation for countless communities nationwide. Without these businesses and the jobs they provide, many communities would face a more uncertain future of lower growth, fewer jobs, and more boarded-up buildings.
Despite this, Section 199A is scheduled to sunset at the end of 2025, even as the businesses it supports continue to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic and the price hikes, labor shortages, and supply chain disruptions that followed.
Making the Section 199A deduction permanent will help Main Street during this very difficult time, leading to higher economic growth and more employment. Separate studies by economists Barro and Furman, the American Action Forum, and DeBacker and Kasher found that making the pass-through deduction permanent would result in significantly improved parity and lower rates for Main Street businesses.
The more quickly Congress acts to make Section 199A permanent, the sooner Main Street businesses will benefit. We appreciate your introduction of this important legislation and look forward to seeing it enacted.
