Contact: Gerry Fritz (703) 812-2062 For Immediate Release               [email protected] July 23, 2013

Arlington, Va. – Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) today issued the following statement in response to the White House corporate tax reform proposal unveiled by President Obama in Chattanooga, Tenn.
 
“Far from a ‘grand bargain,’ the president’s latest trial balloon simply repackages warmed-over White House proposals from years past,” said ABC Vice President of Federal Affairs Geoff Burr.
 
“Corporate-only rate reduction does not amount to business tax reform,” Burr stated. “The president’s plan not only widens the existing gap between Main Street and the Fortune 500, but would actually mean billions of dollars in increased taxes for construction contractors.
 
“Pass-through businesses comprise 80 percent of the construction industry and employ the majority of the private-sector workforce,” said Burr.  “A tax cut for large corporations financed on the backs of small business can hardly be called grand, and is certainly no bargain for the sixty million Americans working for pass-through entities.
 
“Despite the president’s insistence on dividing the business community, ABC is encouraged by the bipartisan, comprehensive approach by Chairmen Baucus and Camp, and we look forward to working with them to make the tax code fairer, simpler, and more equitable for businesses irrespective of size or industry.”

---

Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) is a national trade association representing 22,000 members from more than 19,000 construction and industry-related firms. Founded on the merit shop philosophy, ABC and its 72 chapters help members develop people, win work and deliver that work safely, ethically, profitably and for the betterment of the communities in which ABC and its members work.