Chief financial officers say tax code certainty is now even more important than a reduction in corporate tax rates, given today's political, economic and regulatory changes, according to a new survey conducted by Alvarez & Marsal Taxand LLC, a founding member of the first global network of independent tax firms.

"For companies to plan, to invest, to create jobs and to grow, they must have certainty," says Robert N. Lowe, CEO of A&M Taxand. "In fact, confidence in knowing precisely what the tax code will require has become more important than how much it will cost them. As our research reveals, as long as proposed changes remain up in the air, companies will be forced to continue to burn fuel operating in holding patterns rather than charting productive courses forward."

The survey finds that respondents' worries regarding the lack of certainty in the current tax system are apparent in how they respond to proposed tax legislation. In fact, only 29 percent of respondents from large businesses model the impact of tax proposals; however, just 15 percent of respondents from small businesses do the same, which stresses the value executives place on certainty.