SOCMA Welcomes President's Call to Permanently Extend R&D Tax Credit

The Society of Chemical Manufacturers and Affiliates (SOCMA) welcomed President Barack Obama’s proposal to Congress to increase and permanently extend the research and development (R&D) tax credits for U.S. businesses. The extension, estimated at $100 billion over 10 years, will assist with job growth within the chemical manufacturing sector.

“SOCMA welcomes the Administration’s plan to permanently extend the R&D tax credit, a position for which we have advocated for years,” said SOCMA president and CEO Lawrence D. Sloan. “Products that will enhance our daily living tomorrow are being designed in SOCMA member laboratories today. This tax credit makes it easier for small and mid-sized batch, custom and specialty chemical manufacturers to manage their research budgets and make effective business decisions.”

Sloan added that government incentives like a permanent R&D tax credit will provide small chemical manufacturers with the flexibility and continuity needed to support the economic recovery. First created in 1981, the R&D tax credit benefits some 18,000 companies of all sizes and has been repeatedly extended by Congress.

“Seventy percent of credit dollars are used for salaries of workers engaged in R&D, which encourages the creation of more high-paying U.S jobs,” Sloan explained. “Given the slow pace of the economic recovery, we hope lawmakers will act quickly to make this extension permanent when they return to work next week.”

Sloan warned, however, that Congress should not make taxing profits of multinational corporations a condition of extending the tax credit.

“We recognize the importance of a pay-as-you-go system, but manufacturers with overseas operations should not be penalized because of the profits they make. Congress can and should make the R&D tax credit permanent as a first priority and find a means for revenue generation other than taxing companies.”  

Sloan also stated that making the R&D tax credit permanent is only one of numerous options the president and Congress have available to support small and mid-sized manufacturers.

SOCMA members have utilized the association’s grassroots program, SOCMA CONNECT, to urge lawmakers for years to pass the R&D tax extender bills.
 
SOCMA is the only U.S. based trade association dedicated solely to the batch, custom, and specialty chemical industry. For more information, visit www.socma.com.