[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 80 (Tuesday, May 12, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2207-S2208]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
Small Businesses
Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, last week was Small Business Week, and I
was glad to be able to host a business roundtable, last Monday, in
Aberdeen, SD, and hear directly from small business owners in my State.
I was also able to visit the Business and Health
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Innovation Center on the campus of Northern State University, which
houses the Northern Innovation and Startup Center that provides support
for aspiring entrepreneurs in northeastern South Dakota.
Small Business Week is an important celebration, but the impact that
small businesses have is felt literally every day of the year. Nearly
half of Americans in the private sector work for a small business.
Small businesses are responsible for a majority of the new jobs in this
country, and a lot of Americans' first jobs were at a small business,
mine included.
There is nothing small about the impact that small businesses have in
our country, and Republicans know that any path to economic strength
runs through small businesses. That is why they were a key focus of the
tax relief we delivered in the Working Families Tax Cuts last year.
This landmark bill locked in the lower small business tax rates that
Republicans enacted in 2017, giving them certainty to plan for the
future. It also made the 199A small business deduction permanent.
I have heard positive feedback on 199A across industries in my State.
In South Dakota, an agriculture cooperative estimates the impact of
this one policy at over $100 million since 2017, and that money has
been able to be passed on to the farmers who are members of that co-op.
I am sure that those farmers, like so many small businesses across the
country, are relieved that 199A is here to stay.
Mr. President, 199A is just one of the policies in the Working
Families Tax Cuts that help free up money so small businesses can
invest in their operations and in their employees. Another is the 100-
percent bonus depreciation, which is also now a permanent feature of
the Tax Code. Bonus depreciation allows business owners to deduct the
full cost of a new piece of equipment the year they start using it,
rather than spreading that deduction out piecemeal over several years.
Say you are a farmer, and you need to replace your combine, or you
are a manufacturer who needs to upgrade your machinery, or you are a
plumber who needs a new truck. Those are all big expenses, especially
for a small--maybe even, in some cases, a one-person--operation. So
bonus depreciation helps small businesses take on that big expense by
allowing them to deduct the entire thing in that 1 year.
And the impact will be significant. In fact, a car dealership in my
State was able to build an addition and hire 10 more people because of
bonus depreciation.
A lot of our small businesses and farms and ranches in South Dakota
are family-run operations. Many of them have been in the family for
generations, and the plan is to keep them--keep them--in the family for
generations to come. Unfortunately, the death tax has too often
threatened these plans. When one generation passes the business on to
the next, the death tax can take a big bite out of it. It can be
devastating, forcing families to sell all or part of their family
business, farm, or ranch just to satisfy a big tax bill, not to mention
the costly estate planning expenses that many families incur to keep
their businesses from being ruined by a death tax bill.
I am very proud that the Working Families Tax Cuts protects a lot
more family businesses from this unfair tax. In this bill, Republicans
permanently raised the exemption threshold on the death tax, and a lot
of small business owners, farmers, and ranchers have breathed a sigh of
relief that they won't have to worry about losing their livelihoods
when they lose a loved one.
Last week was Small Business Week. It was also Travel and Tourism
Week. In South Dakota, tourism is one of our leading industries. Last
year, 15 million people visited the Mount Rushmore State. They came to
see that iconic monument, to see the South Dakota Badlands and the
bison herds at Custer State Park. Some came for conferences in Sioux
Falls, others for our legendary pheasant hunting.
All told, last year, tourism brought $5 billion to South Dakota's
economy, and I have to think that a lot of that money was spent at our
State's small businesses: at our restaurants, coffee shops, and
breweries; with tour operators, hunting guides, and outfitters, and
many more.
Like the other small businesses in our State, businesses in the
tourism industry are benefiting from tax relief in the Working Families
Tax Cuts: lower small business tax rates, investment incentives, and
the 199A small business deduction.
Some of the most positive feedback I have heard from small business
owners about the Working Families Tax Cuts is how much this bill helps
their employees. The ``no tax on tips'' and ``no tax on overtime''
provisions in this bill are especially--especially--game-changing for
folks in hospitality and tourism. That includes waiters and bartenders,
of course. It also includes people who work as tour guides,
entertainers, and drivers.
Many Americans look forward to the summer for a few days away with
their families. For those who work in hospitality and tourism, summer
means more customers and more money, and the Working Families Tax Cuts
ensures that more of the money they earn stays in their pockets.
Democrats may try to claim the Working Families Tax Cuts was about
billionaires, but the American people know the truth. Farmers,
ranchers, and small business owners know it is helping them free up
money to meet their expenses and invest in their operations and in
their employees, and hard-working Americans can see that the Working
Families Tax Cuts lets them keep more of their hard-earned money. We
call it the Working Families Tax Cuts for a reason, and I am proud to
report that working families are benefiting.
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