(Washington, comprehensive report) U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris plans to significantly increase the tax deduction for startup costs for small businesses, marking her latest move in the economic debate against Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.
Harris’s campaign team announced that she intends to unveil this policy on Wednesday, September 4, at a campaign event in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. The proposal aims to raise the tax deduction limit for small business startup costs to $50,000 (approximately SGD 65,000), which is ten times the current $5,000 limit. This increase is designed to help offset the average $40,000 cost of starting a small business.
This move represents the latest development in the escalating tax policy showdown between Harris and Trump. Since Harris officially secured the Democratic presidential nomination in August, the two have been particularly contentious on tax issues.
Trump’s economic agenda centers on tax cuts. He has previously expressed a desire to continue significantly reducing corporate taxes, proposed eliminating taxes on tip wages and Social Security income, and suggested expanding the child tax credit.
Harris has vowed to protect the middle class and shield American families from high costs. She plans to introduce 25 million new small business startup applications within her first presidential term, surpassing the current record of 19 million small business applications set by President Biden.
To achieve this goal, Harris is preparing to implement several measures to reduce bureaucratic red tape for startups, including establishing a standard deduction for small businesses to streamline tax reporting. She also plans to launch a Small Business Expansion Fund to enable community banks to cover interest costs for new businesses seeking to expand.