State Business Leaders Support Tariffs on China
Survey also Shows Support for Border Security, Visa and Tax Reform
MADISON – Wisconsin business leaders support President Donald Trump’s plan to impose tariffs on goods imported from China, according to the latest Wisconsin Employer Survey, conducted by Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce (WMC), the combined state chamber of commerce and manufacturers’ association.
Eighty-six percent of respondents of the semiannual WMC survey support imposing tariffs on countries like China in response to unfair trade practices. But business leaders have concerns about tariffs on nations like Canada and Mexico. Forty-four percent support 25 percent tariffs on imports from America’s neighbors to the North and South, while 56 percent oppose. Still, 73 percent support President Trump’s plan to use tariffs as a negotiating tactic to slow illegal immigration into the U.S.
When asked how increasing tariffs would impact their business, 50 percent said it would have a negative effect, 26 percent said it would be positive, while 24 percent said it would have no impact.
“Wisconsin is a manufacturing and agricultural state,” commented Kurt Bauer, WMC president/CEO. “We make, grow and process things and we want to sell them around the world. But business leaders are saying that we need our trading partners to play by the rules.”
The survey also shows that Wisconsin business leaders want to see immigration reform, but 89 percent say the plan should start with securing the U.S. southern border. As for what immigration reform should look like, respondents overwhelmingly support updating the nation’s guest worker program, with emphasis on H-1B visas. Ninety-six percent support increasing the current 85,000-person cap on H-1B visas, which targets foreign workers with specialized skills. Further, nearly all support creating new visa options for high-demand workers to address Wisconsin’s labor shortage.
“WMC has been advocating for reforming the guest worker program for some time,” said Bauer. “Demographic trends show that Wisconsin needs workers now and well beyond mid-century. Foreign workers must be part of the solution, or our state will lose jobs and the economic activity that goes with them.”
On taxes, 97 percent of respondents support making the provisions contained in the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) permanent. A new study commissioned by the National Association of Manufacturers says that failing to renew the expiring tax provisions in TCJA will cost Wisconsin 110,000 jobs, $10 million in employee wages and $19.5 billion in GDP from the manufacturing sector alone.
Manufacturing is Wisconsin’s top economic sector, representing nearly 72 billion in GDP annually. The vast majority of survey respondents – 90 percent – support lowering the U.S. corporate tax rate for manufacturers to 15 percent.
Ninety-four percent of business leaders also support making permanent the 199A deduction that levels the tax rate between C-Corporations and pass-throughs, which isn’t surprising given that around 90 percent of Wisconsin businesses are organized as pass-throughs, meaning shareholders rather than the corporation itself pays taxes. In addition, 97 percent support restoring the ability for businesses to deduct research and development expenses in the year they are incurred instead of being forced to amortize expenses over 5 years.
“Renewing the 2017 tax provisions is critical to our nation’s global competitiveness,” said Bauer. “Lowering taxes, along with reducing the cost of regulations and tapping U.S. energy resources, will be a massive force multiplier for our economy.”
The Wisconsin Employer Survey is conducted twice a year by WMC. The assessment provides a snapshot of where Wisconsin’s employers stand on a number of important issues and outlines their economic outlook for both Wisconsin and the U.S. For the Winter 2025 edition, WMC surveyed 153 employers that make up a representative sample of its membership. Businesses of all sizes, industries and geographic locations in Wisconsin participated.
Click here to read the Federal Policy Report from the Winter 2025 survey.
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.
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