A huge tax hike could be on the horizon for small businesses in Illinois that may still be rebounding from the pandemic.  One group hopes that Congress will act before two laws expire leading to a tax hike that could cause further damage.  Vice President for Federal Government Relations, Jeff Brabant with the National Federation of Independent Businesses or NFIB says that the 20% Small Business Deduction Act was created to align small business tax rates with those of larger corporate competitors. 

If Congress decides not to renew the 20% Small Business Deduction Act, Brabant says 90% of America's businesses would face additional barriers to growth and hiring more workers.  According to the US Small Business Administrations 2023 Profile report, Illinois has slightly more than 2 million small business employees which makes up 44% of all Illinois employees. 

The other law up for review by the House is the Main Street Tax Certainty Act which permits small businesses to deduct up to 20% of qualified business income to make it a permanent deduction.  Brabant says that the NFIB strongly supports both measures which expire on December 31st, 2025, and have bipartisan support.  Brabant hopes that small businesses be the #1 issue for Congress coming up in the presidential election.

Brabant says the organization is glad both presidential candidates have talked about small businesses because these discussions don't always occur.  He says NFIB's focus is to educate and increase Congress' awareness and he hopes they will act sooner rather than later.