Comment on FR Doc # 2010-14396

While I have never, nor do I ever plan on using a tanning salon, I think the IRS’s current proposal to levy a 10% excise tax on all indoor tanning salons is inappropriate for the following reasons. 1. An excise tax will kills locally owned small businesses. The current economic climate has weighed heavily on small business owners, especially those offering luxury goods such as tanning. In my community, one of the few industries remaining that is almost exclusively locally-owned is tanning salons. Placing a 10% tax on this industry will, in some cases, reduce profit margins to a point where operating a tanning salon will no longer be a lucrative venture. 2. The figure 10% is excessive. On top of income taxes, corporate taxes, sales taxes, property taxes, business license, county health inspection fees and other costly measures taken to ensure that tanning salons do not violate federal or state law, adding a 10% excise tax on this industry will, in my opinion, levy an unbearable burden on tanning salon owners. 3. Inaccurate labeling of tanning salons as a vice worthy of an “excise tax.” While not explicitly defined as a tax on “vices,” the historical trends in levying excise taxes has revolved around assigning taxes on specific “undesirable” goods to discourage their use. While studies have been conducted on both sides of this issue no scientific consensus exists suggesting that people who use indoor tanning salons are any more likely to have future health issues than those who do not. Thus, the connection between levying an excise tax to capture negative externalities associated with this industry is flawed. In sum, I feel that the proposed excise tax is excessive, unwarranted and a gross overreach of the federal government into the personal liberties of American citizens. I ask you to please reconsider this matter, as it will negatively affect many individuals and communities.