Business Tax

Supporters of a business tax deduction to help private and public schools that has failed in past legislative sessions hoped this year would be different. Plans by the Archdiocese of Baltimore to close 13 schools brought attention to the bill, Gov. Martin O'Malley wrote a letter endorsing it and, for the first time, Archbishop Edwin F. O'Brien made the trip to Annapolis to lobby for passage. But with only days left in the session, the legislation has again stalled in the House committee where it has died twice before.

Thank you for your reporting and keeping the citizens aware of the General Assembly's activity in regards to taxes, fees and revenues, and subsequent speculation on how tax and fee revenues will be managed. The eyes of the nation's finance reporting were on the behavior of the Maryland governor and his proposed tax increases. While other states are developing processes to reduce citizen and business tax burdens, Maryland is the subject of reporting in financial publications. As a state, we're fortunate the General Assembly was able to hold the tax increase line and not increase taxes and fees.

The state comptroller's office is taking its tradition of innovative technology a step further, announcing today that it is the first in the nation to put registration for business tax accounts online.A partnership with Microsoft Corp. and local technology firm Dynatech Integrated Systems in Columbia will allow new Maryland business operators to use computers to set up a variety of tax accounts, including unemployment insurance, said Marvin Bond, a spokesman for the comptroller's office."It unchains the business person or accountant from paper, and it unchains us from processing paper," Bond said.

The councilman who has sponsored legislation that would allow the County Council to replace Daryl D. Jones when he reports to prison later this month is predicting the move will sail through when the panel meets Tuesday. Councilman John J. Grasso, who introduced a resolution that would declare Jones' council seat vacant, said he expects passage for either his resolution or a similar measure — an outcome that would almost certainly send the issue to court. "It's over with," said Grasso, a Glen Burnie Republican who has pushed for Jones to resign.

Advocates of a business tax credit that would support private and public education hope that the Archdiocese of Baltimore's plan to announce school closings this week will heighten the sense of urgency about the legislation before the General Assembly. Supporters of the tax credit bills will rally outside the State House in Annapolis on Wednesday morning as a preamble to an afternoon Senate committee hearing. The Senate and House legislation - which would give Maryland businesses a 75 percent state tax credit for donations to organizations supporting scholarships and school programs - has been introduced four times before.

WASHINGTON -- To craft a budget deal that could win support from both philosophical ends of the Democratic Party, congressional leaders favored deficit reduction and social spending over business tax breaks designed to jump-start the economy.The budget bill that is likely to be enacted later this week was characterized by Democratic leaders yesterday as tight-fistedness with a heart.They contend that it will produce the biggest deficit reduction in history while providing the most generous anti-poverty package in a more than a decade.

Before the Carroll County commissioners agree to a tax credit for research and development equipment, they ought to consider what they would be buying for the estimated $50,000 to $70,000 in next year's tax revenue they would forgo.While this credit is not very large, it raises questions about the effectiveness of using tax breaks to lure business. Along with the credit, the commissioners are also considering waiving building permit fees and other fees for businesses. Tax abatements have proven to be only marginally effective in attracting businesses, according to published research.

Thank you for your reporting and keeping the citizens aware of the General Assembly's activity in regards to taxes, fees and revenues, and subsequent speculation on how tax and fee revenues will be managed. The eyes of the nation's finance reporting were on the behavior of the Maryland governor and his proposed tax increases. While other states are developing processes to reduce citizen and business tax burdens, Maryland is the subject of reporting in financial publications. As a state, we're fortunate the General Assembly was able to hold the tax increase line and not increase taxes and fees.

In a sign that Maryland's economy continues to creep back from recession, the state announced yesterday that revenues for fiscal year 1995 will be about $148 million more than expected.Compared with Maryland's estimated $13 billion budget for next year, the extra money is minuscule. The state government could gobble it up in four days.But, for Gov.-elect Parris N. Glendening, it may provide a little cushion as he considers selective business tax cuts in an effort to create more jobs in the state.

Baltimore not only doesn't tax companies into running away but imposes the second-lightest total business tax burden of the country's 25 biggest cities, according to a study published yesterday.In a finding that directly contradicts a widespread perception that Baltimore and Maryland have an onerous business tax climate, the computer study ranked only Atlanta as having a tax climate more business-friendly than Baltimore's."That finding is absolutely right on the money," said Michael Conte, head of the University of Baltimore's Regional Economic Studies Program.

An Anne Arundel councilman was sentenced to five months in federal prison Monday on a charge that he failed to file nearly three dozen personal and business tax returns over a six-year period. Councilman Daryl D. Jones, a Democrat from Severn who is a practicing criminal defense attorney, was also sentenced to one year of supervised probation and six months of home detention during an emotionally charged hearing held in U.S. District Court in Baltimore. "This has been an extremely embarrassing and humbling experience," said Jones, speaking to the judge.

The next time your car rattles when riding over potholes or your library is closed when you want to peruse the stacks, thank the tax scofflaws, says Maryland Comptroller Peter Franchot. The comptroller's office of compliance has identified 25 individuals and 25 businesses to highlight on its annual "Caught in the Web" list, published Tuesday on marylandtaxes.com . Together, these 50 owe more than $11 million in state taxes, penalties and interest. And that money is only a fraction of the hundreds of millions in delinquent taxes Franchot said is owed to the state.

Supporters of a business tax deduction to help private and public schools that has failed in past legislative sessions hoped this year would be different. Plans by the Archdiocese of Baltimore to close 13 schools brought attention to the bill, Gov. Martin O'Malley wrote a letter endorsing it and, for the first time, Archbishop Edwin F. O'Brien made the trip to Annapolis to lobby for passage. But with only days left in the session, the legislation has again stalled in the House committee where it has died twice before.

I enjoyed reading the interview with T. Rowe Price CEO James A.C. Kennedy appearing in Sunday's Business Section ("Keeping business humming requires striking right balance," Mar. 7). But as a business executive, I take exception to his statement to the effect that the tax situation in Maryland makes other states more appealing to business. Maryland offers many advantages over other states. Show me a state without an income tax, and I'll show you a state with lousy schools. Show me a state with below average taxes, and I'll show you a state with poor roads, no mass transit, few parks and protected open space, degraded environment, high college tuition, and no safety nets for the young, elderly and disabled.

Advocates of a business tax credit that would support private and public education hope that the Archdiocese of Baltimore's plan to announce school closings this week will heighten the sense of urgency about the legislation before the General Assembly. Supporters of the tax credit bills will rally outside the State House in Annapolis on Wednesday morning as a preamble to an afternoon Senate committee hearing. The Senate and House legislation - which would give Maryland businesses a 75 percent state tax credit for donations to organizations supporting scholarships and school programs - has been introduced four times before.

Advocates of a business tax credit that would support private and public education hope that the Archdiocese of Baltimore's plan to announce school closings this week will heighten the sense of urgency about the legislation before the General Assembly. Supporters of the tax credit bills will rally outside the State House in Annapolis on Wednesday morning as a preamble to an afternoon Senate committee hearing. The Senate and House legislation — which would give Maryland businesses a 75 percent state tax credit for donations to organizations supporting scholarships and school programs — has been introduced four times before.

The Arc of Anne Arundel County - a nonprofit organization that provides services for people with developmental disabilities and their families - may be able to provide an extra incentive for businesses to make a donation. Last spring, The Arc was granted $50,000 in business tax credits by the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development's Neighborhood Partnership Program to fund an "assistive technology" program. The funds will be used to purchase technologies - panic buttons, touch screens or a computer system - to remind individuals to go to appointments, to pay bills or to turn off the stove.

WASHINGTON -- Drastically scaling back their expectations, House Republicans launched a five-year, $23 billion tax-cut bill yesterday to replace the 10-year, $792 billion tax cut that President Clinton vetoed Thursday.But even that version faces an uncertain future because it comes in the midst of a battle between the White House and Congress over how to spend the surplus.The bill approved yesterday, along party lines, by the House Ways and Means Committee would extend some expiring tax credits to avoid what would otherwise amount to a tax increase for some taxpayers.

Gov. Martin O'Malley has said he wants to help businesses by tapping federal stimulus money to lower their unemployment tax rates. But first he has to face down the toughest opponents of his plan: businesses. The emerging battle has lawmakers scrambling for a compromise before employers face massive payment increases to the state's unemployment benefits fund in about a month. It also puts the Democratic governor in the awkward position of pushing an immediate antidote that business leaders have decided is poisonous because it imposes long-term costs.

The Obama economic team's announcement this week that it wants more tax relief for small businesses is good news for the economy. Small business today is larger than big business - it earns more money and employs more people - and while Wall Street bailouts may be necessary to preserve capital and liquidity, they are also likely to raise the long-term tax burden of Main Street. If this happens, we will be hurting the very businesses that we need to pull us out of the recession. The predominance of small business in the American economy didn't happen by accident.