WASHINGTON – Senators John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Olympia J. Snowe (R-Maine), Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, today introduced the Invest in Small Business Act of 2007, which strengthens an existing tax incentive to promote innovation and entrepreneurship.
This bipartisan bill, which is being introduced in the midst of National Small Business Week, recognizes the contributions of some 25 million small businesses nationwide that pump over $900 billion into the United States economy. It encourages private investment in small firms by making several key changes to section 1202 of the Internal Revenue code of 1986. That section currently allows individual taxpayers to exclude 50 percent for capital gains from the sale of eligible small business stock if they have held it for five years. This legislation increases the number of taxpayers who will be eligible for the exclusion and makes it more attractive for investors to support small businesses by increasing the exclusion amount and decreasing the period they are required to hold the stock.
"Entrepreneurship is what keeps America on the cutting-edge of technological innovation," said Kerry. "Many of our largest and most successful corporations once started as small businesses with big ideas. Today, small businesses can repeat the role they played at the vanguard of the computer revolution by leading the nation in developing technologies to reduce carbon emissions and curb global climate change. America's entrepreneurs are already are at the forefront of these industries, and we need to do everything we can to encourage investment in small businesses."
"As the engine of our economy's growth, it is vital that we help small businesses access the resources they need to expand, thrive, and, most importantly, create jobs," said Senator Snowe. "By increasing the exclusion for small business stock to 75 percent and taxing non-excluded proceeds at regular capital gains rates, this legislation would take a critical step toward promoting investment in small businesses. In addition, by eliminating the tax on stock gains attributable to small businesses located in Empowerment Zones, this bill would help generate jobs in our nation's most economically disadvantaged areas."
Specifically, the Invest in Small Business Act strengthens section 1202 provisions by:
This bipartisan bill, which is being introduced in the midst of National Small Business Week, recognizes the contributions of some 25 million small businesses nationwide that pump over $900 billion into the United States economy. It encourages private investment in small firms by making several key changes to section 1202 of the Internal Revenue code of 1986. That section currently allows individual taxpayers to exclude 50 percent for capital gains from the sale of eligible small business stock if they have held it for five years. This legislation increases the number of taxpayers who will be eligible for the exclusion and makes it more attractive for investors to support small businesses by increasing the exclusion amount and decreasing the period they are required to hold the stock.
"Entrepreneurship is what keeps America on the cutting-edge of technological innovation," said Kerry. "Many of our largest and most successful corporations once started as small businesses with big ideas. Today, small businesses can repeat the role they played at the vanguard of the computer revolution by leading the nation in developing technologies to reduce carbon emissions and curb global climate change. America's entrepreneurs are already are at the forefront of these industries, and we need to do everything we can to encourage investment in small businesses."
"As the engine of our economy's growth, it is vital that we help small businesses access the resources they need to expand, thrive, and, most importantly, create jobs," said Senator Snowe. "By increasing the exclusion for small business stock to 75 percent and taxing non-excluded proceeds at regular capital gains rates, this legislation would take a critical step toward promoting investment in small businesses. In addition, by eliminating the tax on stock gains attributable to small businesses located in Empowerment Zones, this bill would help generate jobs in our nation's most economically disadvantaged areas."
Specifically, the Invest in Small Business Act strengthens section 1202 provisions by:
