Policy Recommendations: A Level Playing Field

Expand open and fair competition for small businesses

• Prohibit non-compete agreements, with few discrete exceptions, to ensure that entrepreneurs are free to start business ventures and compete in the marketplace based upon the quality of their products and services. 
• Strengthen the Robinson-Patman Act of 1936, also called Anti-Price Discrimination Act, that protects small businesses from being driven out of the marketplace via discriminatory pricing, promotional allowances and advertising afforded to large, franchised companies.  
• Implement laws that requires transparent, simple and fair franchise agreements.  
• Ensure that franchisees have the right, including through private action, to enforce claims against the franchisor and protect themselves from unscrupulous one-sided business practices. 

Curtail anticompetitive practices by large technology platforms

• Prohibit the ability of technology platforms to impede free and fair competition through practices such as self-preferencing, forced advertising, copycatting and exclusion.  
• Support efforts to rein in corporate consolidation and mergers that increase prices and prevent small businesses from competing on a level playing field. 

Implement equitable tax policies that provide bottom-up benefits to small businesses

• Based upon data compiled by the Tax Policy Center, 73% of the current Section 199A pass-through tax deduction benefit flows to the largest and wealthiest 5% of businesses. Replace Section 199A with bottom-up tax relief to the smallest businesses—for example, institute a small business standard deduction of $25,000.  
• Increase the top marginal tax rate on the very wealthy, understanding that only 2% of business owners with pass-through income pay at the top rate. 
• Maintain full funding for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to ensure that small businesses have access to information and services and ensure fair tax collection.  
• Pass healthcare tax equity for the self-employed so that freelancers can deduct their healthcare expenses from their FICA tax obligations—just like other business entities.