City of LA Business Tax Advisory Committee announced

Thursday, January 07, 2010

Business Tax Advisory Committee reconvenes

Yesterday the Business Tax Advisory Committee had its first meeting to begin the process of reviewing and recommending business tax reforms that will help Los Angeles attract and retain jobs and businesses.

LA's unemployment rate is four points higher than the national average and our efforts must focus on getting people back to work and fighting for every job in this city. The Business Tax Advisory Committee has been assembled to develop ideas that will jump start our local economy and create jobs.

The first BTAC was created in 1999 and proposed several tax exemptions and administrative changes that helped Los Angeles become more business-friendly, including the Garcetti-Greuel reforms that now save businesses more than $90 million annually. The Business Tax Advisory Committee was reinstated with nine members who will meet during the next 18 months.

The Business Tax Advisory Committee appointees are:

• Lloyd Greif (BTAC Chair), Entrepreneur/Finance Expert (Garcetti)
• Michael Banner, Small Business Owner (Parks)
• Kathy Faulk, Checkers Hotel Hilton (Hahn)
• Dwayne Gathers, Business Development Consultant (Perry)
• Saul Gomez, State and Local Tax Services, Ernst & Young (Mayor)
• Mel Kohn, CPA and Former BTAC Chair (Alarcon)
• Craig Morris, Tax Expert, KPMG (Garcetti)
• Melissa Patack, Vice President State & Government Affairs, Motion Picture Association of America (Mayor)
• Mel Wilson, Real Estate Broker, former NFL Player (Wesson)