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Small business owners are grateful for new tax breaks, but say it's not enough

A woman stands in front of a blue wall with a neon sign that says Peterbrooke Chocolatier
Lily Belcher
/
WUSF
Jennifer Hill is the owner of Peterbrooke Chocolatier in Carrollwood.

President Donald Trump's Big Beautiful Bill has tax breaks that should help small businesses come tax season, but businesses are still facing rising prices and tariffs. And they're having to pay those increases now.

Some small businesses in the greater Tampa Bay region are happy to see permanent tax breaks through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

President Donald Trump’s spending bill, which he signed into law on July 4, made the 20% small business deduction permanent and amended how businesses can write off equipment purchases.

But others are saying these tax breaks aren’t enough to make up for rising prices and the effects of tariffs.

Bill Herrle, the National Federation of Independent Business’ Florida executive director, said the change should provide some consistency for small business owners.

ALSO READ: Some of Brazil's big industries got a pass from Trump's tariffs; others are plenty anxious

Since 2017, small businesses could deduct 20% of their income every year. That deduction was going to expire this year.

Now, it’s permanent.

“[It’s] giving small business owners that assurance that they can plan for the future, they can look forward to knowing what their tax rate is going to be and there's going to be a little something they can reinvest in their businesses,” Herrle said.

But Emmanuel Dunbar, the co-owner of Royal Diaspora Coffee in Temple Terrace, said the change isn’t enough to make up for the rising costs.

He says the coffee he bought from Brazil was less than $2 in 2017. Last year it was $4.

Now, it's $8.

A man stands behind a counter holding a yellow mug
Lily Belcher
/
WUSF
Emmanuel Dunbar is the co-owner of Royal Diaspora Coffee in Temple Terrace.

Brazilian coffee got hit with a 50% tariff this summer while some other goods from Brazil were exempt from the levy.

While Herrle said the 20% permanent deduction will create more reliability for small business owners, Dunbar said the uncertainty from tariffs is worse.

"It is impossible to plan and be accurate with what we're going to spend," Dunbar said.

And it’s not just the coffee. He says the cost of his paper cups and glass mugs tripled over the past two months.

ALSO READ: Floridians brace for SNAP uncertainty amid Trump's new tax law

“It’s the same product coming from the same manufacturer, but we’re paying three times more now,” Dunbar said.

He said the tax breaks won't help him until next year, but he's paying extra for the tariffs now. And that increased cost is money he won't get back.

For Jennifer Hill, the owner of Peterbrooke Chocolatier in Carrollwood, the tax breaks mean she’ll be able to pay herself and her employees more.

Still, Hill is likely going to have to raise the prices for her chocolate again because of the rising cost of cocoa.

A case of different colored chocolates
Lily Belcher
/
WUSF
A local chocolatier said the tax breaks will help her company, but she's still facing rising costs.

While tariffs do have an effect on the European chocolate she imports, she said the main reason for the rising cost is bad or diseased crops.

She’s not worried about losing too many customers because she said good-quality chocolate is a treat people are willing to spend a little extra on.

The tax break she’s really looking forward to is the bonus depreciation change.

"We have machines that help us hand temper all of the chocolate, and they are quite expensive. So it's a good thing that we're getting some tax incentives for that,” Hill said.

The machines keep the chocolate warm, or at temper, while Hill uses it to decorate the candies she sells.

Businesses like Hill’s can now claim 100% depreciation of tools and machines they purchase in the same year they buy them, rather than deducting it slowly over time.

Herrle said that while deducting 20% of the equipment’s cost over five years would equal 100%, businesses will benefit because today’s dollar is likely going to be worth more than tomorrow’s dollar.

"It makes it easier for small businesses to recapture some of that and then to reinvest in their business in either tools and equipment or they can improve their product or service,” Herrle said.

But Dunbar said he can’t focus on the tax break he is going to get next spring.

He is worried he’ll lose customers because he’s having to raise his prices, and he doesn’t know how much they’re willing to pay.

"We are really just trying to work day by day and week by week,” Dunbar said. “We know that having those cuts will benefit us in the long run, but it's really hard to look that far ahead."

Lily Belcher is a WUSF Rush Family Radio News intern for summer of 2025.
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