NRF welcomes repeal of tax provision in healthcare law

WASHINGTON — The National Retail Federation said it welcomed the House of Representatives' vote to repeal a provision in last year’s healthcare-reform law that would widely expand the number of IRS 1099 tax forms businesses would be required to file.

“This is a commonsense step to keep the business community from being hit with a blizzard of unnecessary paperwork that has nothing to do with health care,” NRF SVP government relations David French said. “The important thing now is for the House and Senate to come together on a final version of repeal and settle this issue as quickly as possible. This provision never should have been in the healthcare bill to begin with, and it’s already taken far too long to get it removed.”

The House voted 314-112 to approve H.R. 4, the Small Business Paperwork Mandate Elimination Act, sponsored by Rep. Dan Lungren, R-Calif. The bill would repeal a provision in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 that requires businesses to file a Form 1099 with the Internal Revenue Service whenever they make noncredit-card payments totaling $600 or more to a vendor during a single year.

Other organizations that support the repeal include the National Association of Chain Drug Stores and the National Community Pharmacists Association.