Texas House Committee OKs Small Business Tax Relief Measure

The Texas House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee has approved a provision that would help Texas’ small businesses by increasing the small business exemption under the franchise tax – an initiative that Representative Brandon Creighton (Conroe) has been spearheading this session.

Currently any business with total revenue of $300,000 or less is exempt from the new franchise tax. Early this session Creighton filed House Bill 1284 which calls for this exemption to be doubled to $600,000. On April 18 the House Ways and Means Committee amended House Bill 3767, an omnibus tax bill by Chairman Jim Keffer (Eastland), with language from Creighton’s bill.

The Comptroller has estimated that this measure will protect an additional 60,000 businesses from the franchise tax.

“Small businesses are the job engine of this state,” said Creighton. “This increased exemption encourages the spirit of entrepreneurship and will help create new and better paying jobs for Texans.”

Creighton said that he got the idea to file the bill after meeting with several local small businesses and the Chambers of Commerce. The Greater Conroe/Lake Conroe Area Chamber of Commerce passed a resolution supporting the increased exemption.

Source: Texas House of Representatives