Pete Hoekstra

Operating Room

Washington, Nov 3 -

It has become abundantly clear that House Democrats have not listened to their small business owners during the health care town halls.  The newly released health care bill will burden job creators in several ways.

The bill imposes a federal mandate on all businesses to provide acceptable health insurance (as determined by bureaucrats) for full- and part-time employees.  If businesses do not comply with the mandate, they will be forced to pay a tax of 8 percent of wages, which essentially taxes job creation.  Only the smallest of companies would be exempt from the provision.

In addition to employer mandates, the bill will impose a 5.4 percent “surtax” on individuals with incomes of more than $500,000 and families with incomes of more than $1 million.  The majority of those affected by the new surtax are actually small businesses.  The surtax would impact approximately 20,500 small businesses in Michigan, according to a study by the Heritage Foundation, and make it more difficult for them to compete.

The bill has clear negative impacts on America’s small businesses, which are the backbone of our economy.