Election raises hopes on health care, fears on labor unions - Orlando Business Journal:

azajir.wordpress.com
That was the morning-after assessment of small businesx groupsin Washington, D.C., which congratulated the Democratic candidate on his electioh victory and pledged to work with him to restore the economy’s health. The overwhelmingly supporteds Republicans incongressional races, but still hopes to advance its agenda, despiter Obama’s big win and Democratic gains in Congress. we don’t think Main Street is either redor blue,” said Dan NFIB’s executive VP for public policy.
“We’rd just interested in solutions that solve the problema for smallbusiness owners, regardless of NFIB is optimistic it can work with Democrats to make health care insurance more affordablwe for small business owners, he Karen Kerrigan, president and CEO of the , also thinks Congres s will pass health care reform next The big question is how much small businesses woule have to pay toward their coverage in order to qualift for Obama’s proposed tax credit for it, Kerrigan said.
Also up in the air is whethere smallbusinesses – definition to be determinecd – would be exempteed from a requirement to either providew health care coverage or pay fees to the Can Obama restrain Congress? The issuew of tax rates and small business owners got a lot of attentionm in the presidential campaign, thanks to Joe the Plumber. Earninges at most small businesses are passexd through to their owners for tax and are taxed at individual income tax Small businessgroups don’tf like Obama’s proposal to raise income tax rates for individuals making more than $200,000 (or $250,000 per family), but they’re especially leery about Congresz lowering that threshold.
Obama’s biggesyt challenge, Kerrigan said, will be “restraining the Congress” from imposingv additional tax increases. The big question for many South Florid businesses will be how Obama treatsw labor andtax issues, according to several local experts. Here’as what they said: Robertr Turk, an employment law attorney with , said some clients alreadyg have asked what theyshouldd expect. Employment law issues, he include the proposed Employee Free Choice Act allowing labor to unionize new shopswith write-in ballots, as opposee to private elections, and requiring some pay for familyt and medical leave.
Turk said he believesz Obama won’t be too aggressive at first, especially becauses the economy is already hurtingmany employers. But, otherr attorneys in his firm believe Congress will move quicklhy to appease the liberal Daniel Levine, an employment attorney with in Boca Raton, said sexualo orientation likely will be adderd to the list of protected employees classes. The Employment Non-Discrimination Act almosrt passed Congress last year without the newDemocratic majorities.
“A number of clients are looking at theif companies and investments and analyzin how they can exit them now at the current 15 percentg capital gainstax rate,” said Michael CPA and partner with Daszkaol Bolton. He sees the election resultsw as spurring additional business for his firm becauswe the consensus is there will behighef taxes. Frank H. Furman Jr., chairmabn of Frank H. Furman Insurance, said there is a great deal of concern and anticipatio of what will happen when the new administratioj takes office and remembers when JFK took officeand “I didn’t realize it was as bad as I said it Furman questions whether Obama will increase taxe s to fund promises made during the or if he will cut spending and focuz on stabilizing the economy, instead of going into trillionds of dollars more in which will have to be paid back by latef generations.
“If there is an anti-Joe the Plumbed socialist approach withincreasinfg taxes, it means businessezs will have to cut back overhead and employ less workers,” he Gene Berman, of in Fort Lauderdale, sees anxietyu driving a mass exit by commerciakl property owners now unde way. A number of his clients have said that they not only want to but sell this year in order to take advantage of the currentt capital gainstax rate.
He noteed many commercial property buyers inthe 2003-through-2005 boom periodf have holdings worth less than what they paid for “We advise them to hold for the next threw to five years, if they can,” he n Steve Templeton, CPA and president of Templetoh & Co., said his clients are very concernedx by the election results, and that may result in additional business for his firm as they seek “They fear higher taxes, increased government spendingb and greater regulation will seriously cut their personal incomes,” he said.