LANSING – Changes in Michigan?s business taxes to help small business are the top priorities of Michigan’s two leading small business organizations. That includes not only specific proposals for small businesses, but ensuring that small businesses have a hand in drafting any legislation to create a new overall business tax.

The National Federation of Independent Business and the Small Business Association of Michigan also call for efforts to control overall health care costs and to prevent “unnecessary” or “job killing” regulations in the new year.

Beyond that, the two groups diverge on a number of their priorities, though none is in conflict with the other.

The NFIB has set its agenda for 2006, while the legislative committee of SBAM still has to meet January 10 to finalize its priorities among 10 so far identified by the group.

After a year in which changes to the Single Business Tax largely dominated state legislative activities – and led to a new credit signed last month that will affect mostly manufacturers – small business executives want a greater focus on their industries in 2006.

In fact, Treasurer Jay Rising and Senate Majority Leader Ken Sikkema (R-Wyoming) have both said they would like to see some tax help for small businesses.

The NFIB called specifically for cutting the business tax rate from 2 percent to 1 percent, lifting the income limit on the small business credit from $95,000 to $175,000, accelerating the removal of health insurance premiums from the SBT base as well as an overall cut in the SBT rate.

The SBAM said simply the state’s tax system should encourage the development of small businesses in Michigan. But it also stressed that it supported repeal of the SBT and “fundamental reform” of the state’s overall tax structure. Both groups said they intended to be part of the discussion on changes in the business tax structure.

Both the NFIB and SBAM also said there needed to be controls on government regulations. The NFIB singled out stopping any proposed standards on ergonomics (something that Sikkema has also said Senate Republicans would oppose and legislation prohibiting such a standard has been introduced in the House).

Both also said the state should help control the costs of health care, with the NFIB calling for limits on health insurance mandates.

Beyond those three, the two groups took somewhat different paths on their priorities (or proposed priorities with SBAM). SBAM’s proposed priorities also call for cuts in overall state budget spending, promoting greater competition in telecommunications, development of a comprehensive energy plan to help cut business costs, greater promotion of advanced manufacturing and high technology industries, as well as promoting entrepreneurial education.

And the organization calls for the state to better promote the tourism industry.

The NFIB listed among its priorities passage of a constitutional amendment to put greater limits on property seizures by government, a block to any effort to boost the state’s minimum wage, a block on any effort to weaken controls on tort reforms enacted in 1995. And the NFIB also said it would fight any proposed changes to Michigan’s term limits constitutional requirements.

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