ACCA Fights for Contractors: Opposes Inflation Reduction Act

Posted on:

August 12, 2022

ACCA along with over 70 other trade associations have written and signed a letter opposing the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which recently passed in the Senate. As excited as ACCA is about the focus on tax incentives that would drive a stronger emphasis on energy-efficient HVAC equipment, the bill misses the mark on several critical aspects that will have severe impacts on America’s small businesses. Most notably, the bill does nothing to address inflation being at a 40-year high, two consecutive quarters of negative economic growth, and a rapidly shrinking small business sector. Instead, it increases the burden of the tax code shouldered by America’s small and family-owned businesses.

“The Biden Administration claims the savings in the IRA are “front-loaded” and will reduce the deficit in the short-term, helping to ease inflationary pressures,” the trade associations write in the letter. “That is simply not the case. A recent analysis by the Congressional Budget Office, Penn-Wharton, and others shows the Inflation Reduction Act would increase prices in the short term and do little to bring them down in the long run.”

ACCA and other trade associations also take issue with the Warner Amendment, which was adopted at the last minute and presented the Senate with a clear choice between Wall Street and Main Street. The Senate chose Wall Street. This amendment extends for two years the Section 461(1) cap on losses a business owner is permitted to claim.

“This $52 billion tax hike on pass-through businesses was adopted with almost no consideration, and the revenues it raises were used to offset the cost of exempting private equity investors from the fifteen-percent corporate minimum tax,” write the trade associations. “The cap on active pass-through loss deductions is bad policy at any time, but it is particularly harmful when the economy is weak and an increasing number of businesses are suffering losses. The timing of this amendment’s adoption could not have been worse.”

ACCA will continue to update its members on the status of the IRA.

To read the full letter, click here: 8-11-2022-Main-Street-IRA-Opposition-Letter

To learn more about the IRA, click here.