SAA
urges the U.S. Senate to pass two key tax provisions that will be
beneficial to alleviating the tax burden faced by small business owners
like photographers. As the Senate prepares to debate H.R. 5297 - The Small Business Jobs Act of 2010,
SAA has sent letters of support to the Senate Small Business and
Entrepreneurship Committee leadership and Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA),
applauding their efforts to ease some of the challenges faced by many
photographers.
Tax Provision 1: The Senate’s Version
Sen. Mary
Landrieu (D-LA), Chairwoman of the Committee and Ranking Member Olympia
Snow (R-ME) have proposed a substitute to H.R. 5297, which includes a
provision (Section 2042) to allow self-employed business owners to
deduct their health care expenses pre-tax for one year. This particular
provision has been introduced on a number of occasions by both the
House and Senate as a permanent change to the tax code.
Currently, self-employed photographers must factor in the cost
of health care into their self-employment tax payments. “The proposed
tax relief is what small business owners need,” says Claire White,
SAA’s executive director. “While Section 2042, allows the deduction for
only one year, it will still make a difference to the self-employed
photographer.”
Tax Provision 2: Senate Amendment 4330
An additional provision to this bill has been introduced by Boxer. This amendment (S.Amdt. 4330) would change the current tax code to allow business owners to select a standard home office deduction in the amount of $1,200 rather than using the existing tax criteria to calculate the deduction.
Like Section 2042, this provision has also been introduced in previous years as a means of helping home-based business owners. The inclusion and passage of this provision should reduce the confusion and worry faced by small business owners when opting to take advantage of the home office tax deduction.
Make Your Voice Heard!
It is anticipated that discussion on this bill will move quickly. As a result, a vote could happen as early as this week or next. To encourage your senator to support the passage of this bill, visit Professional Photographers of America’s Contact Congress page to send an e-mail or letter.
SAA is a strong advocate for the rights of stock photographers, from copyright to small business issues relating to health care. Through the Small Business Coalition for Affordable Healthcare, SAA advocates health care solutions that meet the needs of small business owners, employees, the self-employed and their families. In previous congressional sessions, SAA has supported various health reform bills, in particular those that would provide trade associations the ability to create insurance pools on behalf of its members.
