Charlotte small-business owners urge tax reform

Several small business owners from the Charlotte area are among hundreds who have signed two separate letters to President Obama and Congress urging tax reform.

The letters, both listed as having more than 600 signatures, were sent by the American Sustainable Business Council, Business for Shared Prosperity and the Main Street Alliance. Business for Shared Prosperity is still collecting signatures on its website.

One letter voices support for ending the Bush-era tax cuts for families with income over $250,000. That letter states, in part, that “huge tax cuts for the richest Americans have not trickled down to increase small- and medium-sized business investment, broad based consumer purchasing power or job creation...” Signatures listed include Andrew Chesley of Chesley Morgan Consulting LLC in Concord, and Charlotte-based Roberta Dees, investor; Karin Kish of Growing Love Project, Carole McLeod of Advantage Waste, and Thomas Swanson, small business owner.

The other letter calls for corporate tax reform “that is fair and provides sufficient revenue for the public services and infrastructure that underpin our economy.

“…In our current two-tier corporate tax system, some profitable U.S. corporations pay taxes while others pay little or none – using aggressive accounting manipulation to disguise U.S. profits as foreign profits to avoid taxes.” Listed signatures for that letter include Swanson, and Sally Thomas, retired, tour business.