Washington— Today the House of Representatives will vote on the Job Protection and Recession Prevention Act of 2012. This piece of legislation will protect American taxpayers from a $4 trillion tax hike in 2013 as a result of the fiscal cliff. Congresswoman Lynn Jenkins, member of the Ways and Means Committee, released the following statement on the importance of preventing the tax hike and protecting job creators.

“According to the Department of Labor there are 700,000 more unemployed people today than in January 2009. Stopping the tax hike is not just about raising taxes, it’s about jobs.

“Small businesses have been responsible for about two-thirds of new U.S. jobs created. Raising taxes on what some may call “the rich” may make a great headline, but it will hit nearly one million small businesses known as pass throughs, like partnerships, LLCs, S Corporations, and sole proprietorships.This is because these employers tend to file their business income on their individual tax return. Not only will this tax hike result in less investment and lower wages, but it will also destroy another 700,000 jobs.

“Income taxes aren’t the only tax hike small business owners are facing. The estate tax is scheduled to jump from 35 percent to 55 percent on assets totaling $1 million—instead of the current $5 million. When we think of small businesses we don’t always think of family farms, but if the estate tax reverts back to $1 million dollars it will affect 24 times as many farmers as it does today—potentially bankrupting thousands of them.

“In Kansas, we take that number seriously. In my district alone there are 20,000 farmers, and hardly any are millionaires. In fact, the average family farmer could easily hit that $1 million mark with merely accounting for the value of their land, and basic farm equipment.

“Raising taxes on job creators will harm our already fragile economy, while the CBO predicts avoiding the fiscal cliff could add 2-3 million jobs next year alone. Extending current rates will buy us time to plan for comprehensive tax reform, without risking thousands of jobs and another recession. This should be an obvious choice--stop the tax hike and create jobs instead.”

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