August brings the annual congressional recess to Washington, D.C., a time when staffers swap out their business attire for more casual (and cool) fare and rejoice that their bosses are out of the office and back in their districts and/or states. (Side note: Regulators don’t take recess. They crank out regulations year-round.) However, once recess comes to a close after Labor Day, there are a few harrowing numbers to consider. First, the House will only be in session 12 working days before the November midterms and 15 days thereafter. Second, many bills could still hurt our industry that are hanging in the balance. Here is a summary of some of the major issues HARDI is following this summer.
• The America’s Small Business Tax Relief Act (H.R. 4457) passed the House of Representatives by a 272-144 bipartisan vote in June. This bill, which was authored by Rep. Pat Tiberi (R-OH) and has been a legislative priority for HARDI, would make permanent the levels effective during the 2010-2013 tax years, allowing taxpayers to expense up to $500,000 of investments in new equipment and property (via 179d), with the deduction phased out after investments exceed $2 million.