Steering Small Business Left

The voice of small business in Washington has had a conservative accent for decades. Two new groups are providing an alternative.

The Small Business Majority, run by John Arensmeyer, and the Main Street Alliance, led by Sam Blair, gained prominence on Capitol Hill and at the White House during the health care debate last year as Democrats looked hard for support in the small-business community.

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Taxing the Golden Goose

The New York Stock Exchange has hosted conference calls twice a month since late fall that draw several dozen lobbyists for large Wall Street banks, mutual funds, and other financial services companies. The discussions aren't on such hot issues as financial services reform or executive pay: They're about trying to kill a proposed tax on large stock and derivative transactions.

The measure, formally introduced early last month by Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., and 22 colleagues, would impose a tax of 0.25 percent on stock transactions of more than $100,000, the equivalent of a $250 tax on a $100,000 sale. The levy would also apply to derivative transactions involving futures and options at a rate of 0.02 percent. DeFazio's bill would provide a $250 tax credit, which basically would exempt all individuals from their first $100,000 of stock trades. Proponents say that the tax would raise about $150 billion annually.

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