Small Businesses Need Congress to Fix 1099 Provision Now
Statement by John Arensmeyer, CEO, Small Business Majority:
The Senate's failure today to pass legislation that would fix the 1099 reporting requirement in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is a blow to small businesses that are looking for relief from a provision that would unnecessarily bog them down in paperwork if it goes into effect in 2012.
The Affordable Care Act has tremendous benefits for small businesses, particularly the tax credits and health insurance exchanges. But the 1099 provision, which has nothing to do with healthcare reform and was included only as a revenue-raising measure, works against them.
Small businesses have made their opinion known: Congress needs to correct this problem now. Legislators on both sides of the aisle agree this provision needs to go, and we commend leadership for their commitment to getting this fixed. But they need to move fast--it's time to put politics aside and get the job done now. Only then will we be able to focus on implementing the ACA and getting small businesses real relief from rising healthcare costs so they can get back to doing what they do best, creating jobs.
Small Business Majority is a national nonprofit organization focused on solving the biggest problems facing America's 28 million small businesses. We conduct extensive opinion and economic research and work with small business owners, policy experts and elected officials nationwide to bring nonpartisan small business voices to the public policy table.