PORTLAND (AP) — Maine small business owners are speaking out about the ongoing negotiations in Washington over the so-called “fiscal cliff.”

Members of the Maine Small Business Coalition are holding a media conference call Thursday to advocate for higher taxes on incomes above $250,000 and protection of Social Security and Medicare programs that the coalition says support small business owners and their customers.

The president and Republican congressional leaders are negotiating in Washington on a bipartisan deal to avert what has been labeled the fiscal cliff. Without an agreement, broad tax increases on nearly all taxpayers and budget-wide spending cuts will be triggered in early January.

The Maine Small Business Coalition represents more than 3,400 small business owners in Maine.

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