Johanns Offers 1099 Repeal that Doesn't Increase Deficit

November 17, 2010 WASHINGTON Sen. Mike Johanns (R-Neb.) today continued his effort to repeal the burdensome 1099 tax paperwork mandate embedded within the new health care law. Johanns reintroduced the Small Business Paperwork Reduction Act and will ask all Senators to agree to it. It eliminates Section 9006 of the new health care law requiring all businesses to file 1099 tax forms for business transactions totaling $600 more in a year. The bill is deficit-neutral, offset by unspent and unobligated federal dollars. "Momentum behind this repeal has been building since I first introduced it in July," Johanns said. "We've heard businesses say this will bury them in costly paperwork; we've heard a division of the IRS say it will lead to an increase in tax penalty errors; and we've heard the President himself call the mandate counterproductive. Now is the time to demonstrate to the American people and small businesses that common sense is returning to Washington and we mean what we say. This legislation could and should pass today." Background: • Section 9006 of the health care law mandates that every business, charity, and local and state government entity submit 1099 forms for business transactions totaling $600 or more in a given year. The new mandate adds routine business expenses like phone, office products, shipping costs and increases businesses' reporting requirements by as much as 2,000 percent. • Johanns introduced legislation on July 14, 2010 and proposed an amendment to the Small Business Jobs Act on September 15, 2010 that would have fully repealed the requirement. • Johanns' leadership on 1099 repeal: o Johanns Leads Push To Repeal Health Care Law's Paperwork Mandate – 7/14/10 o 1099 Amendment Gaining Bipartisan Support – 8/5/10 o Johanns: 1099 Alternative Punishes Job Creators, Hitting Thousands Of Small Businesses – 8/6/10 o Johanns: Small Business Bill Misses Critical Opportunity, Includes Additional 1099 Mandates – 9/16/10