Two key pass-through structures favored by small businesses pay a significantly higher effective tax rate than large corporations, according to an Aug. 7 study released by National Federation of Independent Business and the S Corporation Association, of which ABC is a coalition member.  Analysis by Quantria Strategies shows that S corps will pay the highest effective tax rate in 2013 at 31.6 percent, compared to 29.4 percent for partnerships, 17.8 percent for C-corporations and 15.1 percent for sole proprietorships.  Effective tax rates are the percentage of income businesses pay in taxes.

The U.S. House of Representatives passed two bills in bipartisan votes that will help reform the regulatory process. The Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny (REINS) Act (H.R. 367) passed 232-183 on Aug. 2 and the Energy Consumers Relief Act (H.R. 1582) passed 232-181 on Aug. 1.

The White House corporate tax reform proposal unveiled by President Barack Obama in Chattanooga, Tenn., is no ‘grand bargain,’ said ABC. Obama’s plan consists of the same corporate tax cuts proposed last year paired with new stimulus spending for infrastructure and manufacturing paid for with one-time tax revenue.

The U.S. Senate voted July 30 in favor of five presidential nominees to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). They included new members Nancy Schiffer (D) and Kent Hirozawa (D), as well as NLRB Chairman Mark Pearce (D), who was reconfirmed. Two Republicans, Harry Johnson III (R), Philip Miscimarra (R), were also confirmed by voice vote. 

The U.S. House of Representatives July 25 passed in a bipartisan vote of 265-155 to pass the Coal Residuals Reuse and Management Act (H.R. 2218), which would establish a baseline for coal combustion residuals (CCR) disposal while maximizing flexibility for individual states. 

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit agreed with two other courts July 17 by ruling the president violated the Constitution when he bypassed the U.S. Senate to make recess appointments to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). 

As part of a the Coalition for Fair Effective Tax Rates, ABC will be advocating for the use of effective tax rates—or the percentage of income businesses pay in taxes—as the clearest way to judge the impact of tax reform on businesses as Congress tackles this issue. 

ABC July 17 celebrated a victory after North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory (R) signed a bill (H.B.110) into law that will prohibit state government entities from requiring contractors to sign a project labor agreement (PLA), or any other agreement with labor unions, as a condition of performing work on public construction projects.

As part of a deal to avert a “nuclear option” to end filibuster rules in the U.S. Senate, the nominations of Richard Griffin and Sharon Block to the NLRB were withdrawn. Griffin and Block were two of the members illegally recess appointed to the board by President Obama in 2012. They were renominated by the president in February. 

The IRS July 11 released guidance on the one-year delay of the employer shared responsibility provisions (or employer mandate) and information reporting requirements in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The delay was originally announced July 2 by the Treasury Department in a blog post.