KPMG’s Hank Gutman Shares Perspective on Fiscal Cliff

By Kalen Smith, Big4 Blogger

Hank Gutman, KPMG principal and former chief of staff of Joint Committee on Taxation, has recently shared his perspective on the state of the fiscal cliff. Gutman said that companies need to take the necessary steps to prepare for the fiscal cliff before the end of the year.

Gutman said that KPMG has conducted a number of surveys to determine how executives feel about the upcoming fiscal cliff. He said that most businesses feel that the government is not going to be able to resolve the fiscal cliff before the end of the year. They are taking the necessary precautions and Gutman said other businesses are advised to do the same.

The studies KPMG conducted found that most businesses want to see a combination of spending cuts and tax increases. Another third of study participants said that they prefer to see spending cuts, which would be predominantly targeted towards entitlement programs.

However, Gutman said that most businesses don’t expect the resolution will be in line with their preferences. Most businesses don’t expect any changes to entitlement reforms and will see tax reform to businesses over the next three years. However, only 11% of respondents expect business tax reforms to be instituted in 2013.

Anyone can watch Gutman’s webcast through KPMG’s website.