[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 96 (Thursday, July 1, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1465]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          H.R. 2373, THE START-UP SUCCESS ACCOUNTS ACT OF 1999

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                            HON. BRIAN BAIRD

                             of washington

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 30, 1999

  Mr. BAIRD. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to join my colleague from South 
Carolina in the introduction of legislation that will give owners of 
newly formed small businesses a new way to channel capital into the 
growth of those businesses.
  I am very excited to join my colleague, Mr. DeMint, in this effort. 
I'm pleased to serve alongside Mr. DeMint on the Small Business 
Committee and have found that we see eye-to-eye on so many issues of 
critical importance to small businesses in our respective states. I 
believe that we share a common interest of helping small businesses 
thrive in our nation, and this legislation is a step in that direction.
  Mr. Speaker, Small businesses are the economic foundation of 
southwest Washington. As my colleague mentioned, they account for 
nearly all new jobs in our economy. However, a majority of those new 
small businesses fail in the first few years of existence--largely due 
to lack of capital.
  As currently structured, the tax system seems to penalize capital 
retention. Certainly, it provides disincentives for small businesses to 
save, which I believe is misguided policy.
  As one who grew up with small business owners, I am aware of the 
struggles that one goes through in trying to build a business. My folks 
owned a small clothing store as I was growing up, and went on to run a 
small ice-cream and sandwich shop. They certainly had their good years, 
and their bad and tried desperately to make ends meet during those less 
profitable years.
  Mr. Speaker, this legislation, the Start-Up Success Accounts Act of 
1999, would help our small businesses save for those rainy days; and it 
would allow them to take a more careful, considered approach to 
investing in the growth of their business. By allowing business owners 
to set aside up to 20 percent of their profits in more successful years 
and defer tax on those profits until later years, this bill would put 
another instrument in the toolbelt of new small business owners, who 
need all the help that we can provide.
  Giving small businesses a fighting chance to succeed isn't a 
Democratic issue or a Republican issue--it's an American issue. It's 
the common sense thing to do, and I am proud to join with my colleague 
in drafting and introducing this bill. I think that this straight-
forward legislation will appeal to our colleagues on both sides of the 
aisle who see the simple benefits of promoting savings.

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