PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Small businesses in Philadelphia were dealt a blow this year when the city eliminated their exemption from the Business Income Tax (BIRT). Now, a city councilman wants to restore the exemption for some very small businesses.
Councilman Mike Driscoll introduced a bill to exempt sole proprietorships and single-member LLCs from the BIRT business tax, which they would have had to start paying this year with the elimination of the long-standing exemption that helped small businesses.
"A $50,000 business should not face a $3,200 tax hike. That's not policy, that's displacement," said Driscoll.
In the spring, the city announced that a court ruled the exemption on the first $100,000 of revenue violates the state tax uniformity clause. As a result, small businesses that make less than that would, for the first time in years, have to start paying the BIRT.
But Driscoll's bill doesn't depend on a revenue threshold. It exempts two entire classifications of enterprises, which he said sends a message that Philadelphia supports its local, neighborhood-based entrepreneurs.
"Philadelphia small business owners deserve a tax system that works for them, not against them," he said.
The bill now goes to committee for a hearing.
