Today, 30 large corporations and their trade associations sent a letter to the House Ways and Means Committee and the Senate Finance Committee concluding with the following request:
As business leaders, we consider comprehensive tax reform with a significant corporate tax rateAi??reduction to be a top priority for our companies and our country. Your efforts to date have made taxAi??reform in 2013 a possibility. We stand ready to support you in making it a reality.
Those who, like these corporations, support a cut in the corporate tax rate say that it is among the developed world’s highest. Indeed, on paper, the rate is 35 percent. But almost no corporations pay that rate, because they make use of deductions and loopholes to keep their taxes super low — or, in some cases, get more back from the Treasury than they give to it.
As an example, let’s look at the rates paid by some of the corporations who authored this letter:
- Boeing: Boeing actually paid nothing in net federal taxes between 2002 and 2011, and even netted a negative 12.4 percent tax rate in 2011 because of a large tax benefit. between Its “share of income paid in taxes fell by 23.2 percentage points between 1969 and 2012.” This is all at the same time that it got billions of dollars of subsidies for both its defense and civilian wings.
- FedEx: Memphis-based FedEx paid a negative 3.2 percent tax rate between 2008 and 2010.
- Verizon: Telecom giant Verizon paid a negative 2.9 percent tax rate between 2008 and 2010.
These are just a few examples of these corporations already shirking their tax responsibilities — and actually getting a net benefit from the Treasury. It is unlikely that Americans will want to reduce their taxes further.
You should follow BoldProgressives on Twitter here.
When was it that a single person , a human being , not a business or corporation payed a negative number in taxes. This is insane.
Defense contractors and their associates and their lobbyist’s , when did they last pay their fair share of income and payroll taxes. Expose them and force them to pay all back taxes . Set an example and close all Loopholes, now ,and for good. No Tax-free Offshore accounts. All Corporations and all individuals and CEO’s must pay fair taxes every year until the Debt is turned into a Surplus!
How about a little representation for us. You remember us dont you? The American people, the people that voted you into office? Any of this ringing a bell for you?
Wake up people… Americans pay taxes. This is not about corporate tax rates! It’s about allowing American companies to compete internationally. Corporations PAY NO TAXES! This is not new. They simply build it into their cost of doing business and pass it on to the consumer. So, in the USA where the cost of living is high, this is not as noticable as in most other parts of the world. Futher, if you burden American companies with taxes and not companies that import good and services, you have just created an imballance. Wake up… this kind of talk will take your jobs overseas faster than you’ve ever imagines possible.
This is why every democrat/liberal/progressive should learn about the FairTax. H.R. 25 is a bill that is currently in congress that would completely reform the way we pay our taxes. Remove the hidden costs of doing business and allow small business to thrive. Set up a system that would truly “untax” the poor and not punish them when they try to better themselves.
HR25 1% chance of getting past committee.
0% chance of being enacted.
It is insane that corporations, in some cases, are paying a negative net tax. They have become so embolden that they now pay low wages, reduce employee benefits all so they can off-shore more and more profits. Repeal the tax credit to off-shore jobs and reduce subsidies. If someone can tell me why corporations, who are making record profits, NEED government subsidies I’d be willing to hear it. They were originally given for R&D with start up companies, but this has become a corporate welfare state where the real citizens of this country have sacrificed their own well being for what? All so the middle class virtually disappears ? Time to stand up and demand corporations pay their fair share of taxes. Without a vibrant middle class the economy will continue to struggle. Trickle Down is a complete and utter failure.