Select Media Mentions
CNN: Jeff Bezos endorsed higher corporate tax rates. But it won’t cost him much
April 10, 2021
Amazon (AMZN) isn’t doing anything illegal or improper — or unusual. Few corporations pay 21% of their reported pre-tax earnings in corporate income tax. That’s because there are many ways to reduce the amount of taxable income subject to that tax rate. “They care a lot less what the rate is than they do with […]
Bloomberg: Plans for a Global Minimum Tax Revolution, Explained
April 9, 2021
Many large corporations do. At least 55 large U.S. companies, including Nike Inc. and FedEx Corp., reported paying no U.S. federal income taxes in 2020 even though they were profitable, according to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. And some nations benefit by attracting corporations with low rates. Read more
New York Times: Corporate Taxes Are Wealth Taxes
April 8, 2021
Since the mid-20th century, however, politicians of both political parties have supported cuts in the corporate-tax rate, often under intense lobbying from corporate America. The cuts have been so large — including in President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax overhaul — that at least 55 big companies paid zero federal income taxes last year, according to […]
Newsweek: Top US CEOs Open to Corporate Tax Rate of 28%, Biden Says Trump Cuts Failed
April 8, 2021
Biden campaigned on not raising taxes on anyone making less than $400,000, which would severely limit Democrats’ ability to fund the infrastructure plan should the GOP and lobbyists convince Congress to squash a corporate tax hike. Biden criticized 55 of the largest U.S. companies this week for using “various loopholes where they pay not a […]
AlJazeera: Pros, cons and pragmatism: Biden’s plan to fund infrastructure
April 8, 2021
Matthew Gardner, a senior fellow at the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, agrees. “The low cost of borrowing and the pressing spending needs we face right now make deficit and debt reduction a lower priority at the moment,” he said. Gardner sees the once-in-a-century disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic as a ripe opportunity […]
Miami Herald: Biden’s infrastructure tax hike worries some Democrats about impact on wealthy voters
April 8, 2021
To Democratic strategists, including those close to the president, the tax plan is finely calibrated to earn the most support, drawing extra revenue from the least sympathetic segments of the tax base. A report released last week from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a progressive group, said that more than 50 of America’s […]
Bloomberg: White House Sees GOP’s Corporate Tax-Cut Defense as a Big Loser
April 8, 2021
Biden said at least 55 of the largest U.S. companies paid no federal corporate income taxes in their most recent fiscal year. “It’s just not fair. It’s not fair to the rest of the American taxpayers,” the president said. He was citing a study by the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. Read more
Reno Gazette Journal: Is America big enough to go big again?
April 8, 2021
A new study reports that at least 55 of the biggest corporations paid a goose egg in U.S. income taxes last year — zero, nada — despite hauling in billions in profits. As Sen. Bernie Sanders points out: “If you paid $120 for a pair of Nike Air Force 1 shoes, you paid more to Nike than […]
Washington Post: Biden Says He’s Open to Compromise With Republicans on $2 Trillion Infrastructure Plan
April 8, 2021
Fifty-five corporations saw zero federal tax liability in 2020, according to a report this week by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a left-leaning think tank. The amount of corporate tax revenue raised by the government has fallen from above 2 percent of the United States’ gross domestic product before the GOP tax law […]
NBC News: Biden’s plan to overhaul tax code would close offshore tax loopholes
April 8, 2021
According to a recent report by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, at least 55 of America’s biggest companies paid nothing in federal taxes for 2020, despite earning a collective $40.5 billion in pretax income. To address these kinds of discrepancies, the president’s plan would impose a minimum tax of 15 percent on firms […]
Business Insider: Biden says he wants a 28% corporate tax rate because he’s ‘sick and tired of ordinary people being fleeced’
April 8, 2021
The president blasted companies paying little or no federal taxes, without naming them. He cited a recent report from the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy that found that 55 US multinational corporations paid $0 in income taxes last year. That roster included household names like FedEx, Nike, and HP. “It’s just not fair. […]
Bloomberg: Biden Tax Plan Seen Hitting Tech, Pharmaceutical Companies
April 8, 2021
The provisions — part of the administration’s plan to finance a $2.25 trillion infrastructure package — mean that tech and pharmaceutical companies could lose many of the tax-planning tools that allowed them to pay low rates for years. “This is aiming to prevent gaming the system entirely,” said Matthew Gardner, a senior fellow at the […]
Salon: America’s Biggest Corporations Paid No Federal Income Taxes Last Year: Study
April 7, 2021
According to a new study, conservative policies look to have helped a handful of large companies mooch off the federal government in 2020. The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a progressive think tank, revealed in a report last week that no fewer than 55 of America’s biggest businesses did not pay any federal corporate […]
CQ Roll Call: It’s Spring, the Sap Is Rising — and Congress Turns Its Thoughts to Taxes (Column)
April 7, 2021
In similar paint-by-numbers fashion, the Biden White House is flogging studies by liberal think tanks highlighting how many major corporations have avoided paying any income taxes in recent years. For example, the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy estimated that at least 55 profitable companies (including Nike, Salesforce and FedEx) took a tax holiday in […]
Akron Beacon Journal: FirstEnergy, AEP among 55 Companies that Paid Zero Federal Income Taxes in 2020, Report Shows
April 7, 2021
FirstEnergy and AEP also were among 26 profitable companies that for three years, from 2018 to 2020, took legal deductions that allowed them to pay zero federal income tax, according to ITEP. Nine of the 26 companies were gas or electric utilities. “This isn’t surprising. It isn’t illegal. And it isn’t new,” said Matthew Gardner, […]
Wall Street Journal: Jeff Bezos Backs Corporate Tax-Rate Increase and Infrastructure Plan
April 7, 2021
Amazon has taken advantage of policies allowing companies to reduce their tax liability through research spending or investment in renewable energy. The company reported $1.8 billion in U.S. tax liability for 2020 after years of paying far less or even reporting a negative tax liability. It said a bump in pretax income in 2020 led […]
Washington Post: Biden Says He’s Open to Compromise with Republicans on $2 Trillion Infrastructure Plan
April 7, 2021
Fifty-five corporations saw zero federal tax liability in 2020, according to a report this week by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a left-leaning think tank. The amount of corporate tax revenue raised by the government has fallen from above 2 percent of the United States’ gross domestic product before the GOP tax law […]
Forbes: Why Biden’s Right and Higher Corporate Tax Rates Won’t Chase Off Companies
April 7, 2021
By the end of 2020, the effective tax rate was 14.1%. As Biden noted, 55 major corporations—including Nike, FedEx, Salesforce, and Archer Daniels Midland, and HP—paid no federal income tax in 2020, according to the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. There are those who would immediately say that it’s all due to losses. […]
Business Insider: Biden Wants a 28% Corporate Tax Rate Because He’s ‘Sick and Tired of Ordinary People Being Fleeced’
April 7, 2021
The president also blasted companies paying little or no federal taxes without naming them. He cited a recent report from the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy that found 55 US multinational corporations paid $0 in income taxes last year. That roster included household names like FedEx, Nike, and HP among others. Read more
Los Angeles Times: Column: Jeff Bezos Likes Biden’s Infrastructure Plan Because He Knows It’s Worth the Money
April 7, 2021
As for raising the corporate tax rate, America’s CEOs might object, but let’s recognize that for many big corporations the statutory corporate tax rate is merely theoretical. As the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy has documented, 55 major corporations paid zero income tax on their profits in 2020. Among them were several that are […]
MSNBC: Amazon CEO Supports Higher Corporate Taxes to Pay for Infrastructure Plan
April 7, 2021
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos on Tuesday voiced support for raising the corporate tax rate but stopped short of saying he supports the president’s plan for the increase. The panel discusses Bezos’ remarks and how 55 big U.S. companies avoided federal taxes in 2020. Watch here
CNN: Avlon Reacts to McConnell’s Advice to Corporations
April 7, 2021
“In fact, there were at least 55 profitable companies among the Fortune 500 and S&P 500 that paid no federal tax in 2020. That’s according to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. The number of businesses that paid no income tax for the past three years, though, is half that–26–according to the report.” Watch […]
American Prospect: Biden, Wyden, and Yellen: Bring Investment Home!
April 7, 2021
This is all popular stuff. Poll after poll has shown large majorities of Americans favor raising taxes on the rich and on big corporations, and the majorities on these issues are likely to grow even more lopsided as corporate tax evasion comes under a brightening spotlight. ITEP, the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, has […]
New York Times: Jeff Bezos says Amazon, a Notable Tax Avoider, Supports Raising Corporate Taxes.
April 7, 2021
For years, Amazon has been a model for corporate tax avoidance, fielding criticism of its tax strategies from Democrats and former President Donald J. Trump. In 2019, Amazon had an effective tax rate of 1.2 percent, which was offset by tax rebates in 2017 and 2018, according to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, […]
(Ohio) ABC News 5: Three Ohio Energy Giants Haven’t Paid Federal Income Taxes in Three Years
April 7, 2021
In fact, Akron-based FirstEnergy, Columbus-based AEP and Charlotte, N.C.-based Duke Energy had negative effective tax rates, according to the report by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a nonprofit, non-partisan think tank. The paper, which analyzed tax disclosures in the corporations’ annual reports, found that 55 profitable companies didn’t pay any federal income tax […]
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