Every other month, CFIB members lend their opinions to 'Your Voice,' a survey exploring a variety of current topics. The latest takeaways are showcased in a series of informative charts that summarize these findings.

Your Voice Highlights

 June 2024

Empowering small businesses: The critical role of reducing taxes and costs

CFIB's June Omnibus survey highlights the substantial financial pressures on small businesses caused by high levels of taxation and costs, which present a significant challenge, especially for smaller enterprises, by reducing the funds available for reinvestment. This constraint hinders growth and innovation, as it can limit a business's ability to purchase new equipment, upgrade technology, expand their workforce, and raise wages. 

When asked what they would do with the savings from a reduction in taxes and fees, a majority of business owners would increase employee compensation (56%) or pay down their business debt (54%). Other notable responses were to expand their business (46%), hire more employees (36%), lower or maintain prices (29%), and invest in employee training (28%).

The most burdensome taxes and costs according to business owners are payroll taxes (71%), insurance costs (62%), and corporate income tax (53%). Payroll taxes stand out due to their unique challenges as they represent a mandatory cost for employers independent of profitability, and often involve complex administrative requirements. Insurance expenses emerge as a particularly heavy burden for business owners given businesses are often required to have insurance, but obtaining coverage has become increasingly difficult and costly.

Among other burdensome taxes, 44% of business owners cite property taxes as particularly challenging. In the last 12 months nearly 3 in 4 businesses have experienced property tax or rent increases, with 33% seeing an increase of more than 10%. This has led to adverse effects on businesses, including price increases for consumers (57%) and impeded expansion and growth (40%). Nearly 9 in 10 business owners believe provincial governments should prioritize working with municipalities to address the rising cost of property taxes.

Reducing the tax burden and implementing cost-reduction initiatives could provide much-needed relief, enabling businesses to invest in their workforce, expand, and contribute more robustly to the economy.

Dive deeper into these findings in CFIB's InsightBiz Blog - Empowering small businesses: The critical role of reducing taxes and costs

Marvin Cruz

Director of Research

Explore more June 2024 insights and our extensive survey collection below.