Vice President Al Gore and Governor George W. Bush Answer Small Business Questions from Netbusiness Users Nationwide


MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. -October 30, 2000 -- Netscape Communications, a subsidiary of America Online, Inc. (NYSE: AOL), today has posted answers to questions posed to the Republican and Democratic candidates for president by Netscape® Netbusiness users on the Netbusiness site (http://netbusiness.com/vote2000 ). Vice President Al Gore and Texas Governor George W. Bush both gave small businesses an idea of where they stand on issues of importance to the more than 28 million small businesses in the United States by answering the first of five questions selected from over 1000 submitted on Netbusiness message boards.

Over the past two weeks, visitors to the Netbusiness site had the opportunity to submit questions to the two candidates on a myriad of issues affecting small businesses. Syndicated small business columnist, author, and founder of SBTV.com (Small Business TV), Jane Applegate recently submitted five questions to presidential hopefuls Al Gore and George W. Bush. The first of the five questions and answers were posted to the Netbusiness site today. The remaining four will be posted over the next four days.

Questions posed to the candidates covered a wide range of issues including employee training, taxes, and government bureaucracy. Ms. Applegate asked both Vice President Gore and Governor Bush the same five questions. Here are the candidates' responses to the first question:

Monday, October 30^th
What specific tax incentives do you support that would help small business owners?
-- Submitted by Stephen in Philadelphia, PA on 10/20/00

Vice President Gore:
"I will not risk our economic prosperity with a huge tax scheme that would throw us back into an era of trillion dollar deficits and hurt our ability to pay down the national debt. Within the context of a balanced budget and key investments in our people, I have been a long-time supporter of targeted tax cuts aimed at spurring investment in small business."

"I support raising the estate tax exemption for small businesses and family farms from $2.6 million to $5 million per couple. This change would mean that 70 percent of small businesses currently subject to the estate tax would no longer have to pay any estate tax on their small businesses, and would provide dramatic relief for all small business owners such as yourself."

"In 1997, I fought for the Taxpayer Relief Act, which cut the estate tax, increased the health insurance deduction for self-employed individuals, and updated home-office deductions. As president, I will go further by making the Research and Experimentation Tax Credit permanent - not subject to the annual battle over renewal so that companies can make investments for the future. I will also expand this new R&D Credit so that small businesses can take better advantage of it."

Governor Bush:
"I believe that reducing the marginal tax rates is the best way to promote economic growth through the tax code. It is critical to reduce taxes on entrepreneurial success in order to help expand the economy through innovation. Specifically, my tax cut plan would cut all tax rates. The maximum marginal tax rates of 36 and 39.6 percent, which many small business owners are subject to, would be cut to 33 percent. This large reduction will leave more resources with successful entrepreneurs."

"However, high marginal tax rates are not the only limitation on wealth creation and risk-taking. The death tax also impedes economic growth because much of the capital formation in America occurs through estates."

"In addition, entrepreneurs and small business owners are also singled out for punishment by the estate tax better known as the "death tax". Right now, inheriting a family business generally means inheriting a tax, on assets over $650,000, of between 37 and 55 percent. Family businesses often can't afford this. They may have assets, but lack ready cash. The death tax violates virtually every principle of common sense and free enterprise and I intend to abolish it."

"A final impediment to innovation and economic growth is the uncertainty surrounding whether the current Research and Development tax credit will continue to exist. The R&D tax credit was originally enacted in 1981 and provides companies with a 20 percent tax credit for incremental R&D expenditures. The on-again, off-again nature of the tax credit impedes long-term research. I want to make the R&D tax credit permanent, in order to create an environment that rewards investment in innovative technologies. I believe that this will spur the sustained, long-term investment in R&D that America needs to develop the next generation of critical technologies."

Vice President Gore's and Governor Bush's responses to the following questions will be posted to the Netbusiness site each day this week.

Tuesday, October 31^st
The No. 1 concern among small business owners today is finding qualified workers. What would your administration do to help educate and train employees of small companies?
-- Submitted by mc.sonka in Akron, OH on 10/20/00

Wednesday, November 1^st
Business owners are concerned about taxing Internet transactions. Where do you stand on this issue? -- Submitted by Jack in Philadelphia, PA on 10/19/00

Thursday, November 2^nd
Small business owners spend thousands of hours a year dealing with government paperwork. What will your administration do to cut the red tape?
-- Submitted by Phyllis from Fort Lauderdale, FL on 10/19/00

Friday, November 3^rd
Will your administration continue to fund the U.S. Small Business Administration and other programs aimed at helping America's entrepreneurs? At what levels?
-- Submitted by Jean from New York, NY on 10/19/00

Throughout the week, the site will also feature a daily poll asking Netbusiness users their views on issues relating to the candidates and the election. Results of these daily polls can be found each day at http://netbusiness.com/vote2000.

"A primary goal of Netbusiness is to establish an online community where small businesses can locate resources, communicate with customers and colleagues, and get industry specific news and information," said Jim Martin, senior vice president and general manager of Netscape. "Providing small businesses with the opportunity to hear directly from the Republican and Democratic candidates on the issues important to them and their businesses shows yet another example of how Netscape Netbusiness provides its users with the tools they need to make informed decisions."

Launched by AOL and Netscape in September, Netbusiness provides a free, one-stop home on the Internet to enable owners of small businesses to better manage both their operations and everyday lives. Netbusiness offers easy-to-use and fully customizable information resources, productivity and communications tools including message boards and a custom Netbusiness version of Netscape Instant Messenger, and a free online presence with the innovative "Netbusiness Card", which enables registered users to create an "online storefront" for free.

Netscape Netbusiness is conveniently available on the AOL WorkPlace Channel (Keyword: Netbusiness) on the flagship AOL service, accessible to the millions AOL members who own their own small businesses. The site can also be reached via, Netscape.com (www.netscape.netbusiness.com), CompuServe, ICQ, MapQuest, and Digital City.

About Netscape
Netscape Communications Corporation is a leading provider of software and services that link people and information over the Internet. Netscape pioneered the development of world-class Web browsers, including Netscape Navigator and the new Netscape® 6, a preview of which is available now in free download from www.netscape.com/download. Netscape.com is one of the most visited sites on the Internet during daytime hours with over 34 million registrants who have access to smart tools and services that empower users to take charge of their Internet experience. A subsidiary of America Online, Inc., Netscape is based in Mountain View, California. Additional information on Netscape is available on the Internet at http://home.netscape.com, by sending email to info@netscape.com, or by calling 650-254-1900.