Most US Companies avoid paying income tax

[RetiredGySgt]

According to GAO, you are wrong. Most aren't paying any taxes.

And yes, Ford & GM are operating at a loss. Why? Because their executives have multi million dollar salaries. Even mid level HR people are making $200K plus bonus'.

No wonder they operate at a loss. Making cars is just an excuse to do business. Screw the stakeholders/shareholders. What's important is that the CEO makes $20 million plus this year.

Your link does not differentiate between small and large and you know it. Again you have been schooled on this and ignore it, you can not seem to grasp the concept that MOST of the Companies and Corporations are SMALL and most are either breaking even or LOSING money. The big successful ones DO pay taxes. Your post is ignorant and retarded.


Again you stupid fuck, 8 billion from Gas and oil last year. Ya they are not paying alright. Some of the big Corporations are LOSING money as well, try the Auto Industry I don't think they have had a profit in several years. They would not be selling cars with no interest and HUGE cuts if they were making money.

You would drive what business we still have OUT of the Country cause you are to STUPID to grasp the concept put before you.

 

[Ravi]

Your link does not differentiate between small and large and you know it.

His link doesn't, but mine says 25% of the largest companies paid no taxes in 2005. Shall I post it again?

Why do you guys keep sticking up for corporations that get away with this? It makes no sense at all.

 

[Ravi]

Oh, and they'd be selling cars if they made cars we want to purchase instead of gas guzzling pieces of trash with bad repair records.

 

[chopcrazy]

His link doesn't, but mine says 25% of the largest companies paid no taxes in 2005. Shall I post it again?

Why do you guys keep sticking up for corporations that get away with this? It makes no sense at all.

why is it hard to believe that 4,000 large companies lose money each year?

 

[Glori.B]

His link doesn't, but mine says 25% of the largest companies paid no taxes in 2005. Shall I post it again?

Why do you guys keep sticking up for corporations that get away with this? It makes no sense at all.

it's sad, isn't it? the way they pit us all against each other. there are pahlenty of rich people in the blue states, believe you me...and those poor souls in the heartland, clinging to their guns and religion, are also working their asses off for those big corporations and plenty of them live in red states...in all fifty states those jobs are where it's at...what's it worth to keep them, etc...

without getting into government subsidies or incentives...generally speaking, when a company generates revenue, at tax time they subtract the cost of doing business and if there is a profit they pay income tax on that amount.

if they spend more than they earn, that year it is a loss, so they pay no income tax...even though they might have generated a ton of revenue, they may not have to pay any taxes...

many businesses use their revenue to reinvest in the business...also, a large proportion of revenue goes to payroll, healthcare for employees, retirement, etc...some companies may overpay top people and drive employees into the ground, and the bigger the company is the more often that happens, etc...it's just the nature of the beast, but i don't think the answer is to demonize rich people or people who want to support the interest of business owners.

 

[Glori.B]

"John McCain has a comprehensive economic plan that will create millions of good American jobs, ensure our nation's energy security, get the government's budget and spending practices in order, and bring relief to American consumers. Read each of the sections below to learn how the McCain Economic Plan will help bring reform, prosperity and peace to America."

John McCain 2008 - John McCain for President

 

[Zoomie1980]

His link doesn't, but mine says 25% of the largest companies paid no taxes in 2005. Shall I post it again?

Why do you guys keep sticking up for corporations that get away with this? It makes no sense at all.

The vast majority show little or no profit because they distribute it all out before it shows as income. I used to work with a consulting firm that never turned a profit in all their years. They were a lucrative firm, but they basically zeroed the books by distributing all the profits to the employees at year's end and thus never owed a corporate income tax. Of course the employees got hefty tax bills for that....

Someone pays the tax in the end, though, either the employees on their bonuses, the shareholders in capital gains and dividends, or the employers if they turn a profit.

 

[Glori.B]

John McCain 2008 - John McCain for President

Taxes: Simpler, Fair, Pro-Growth and Competitive
Pro-Growth Tax Policy
Keep Tax Rates Low: Entrepreneurs are at the heart of American innovation, growth and prosperity. Entrepreneurs create the ultimate job security - a new, better opportunity if your current job goes away. Entrepreneurs should not be taxed into submission. John McCain will keep the top tax rate at 35 percent, maintain the 15 percent rates on dividends and capital gains, and phase-out the Alternative Minimum Tax. Small businesses are the heart of job growth; raising taxes on them hurts every worker.

Cut The Corporate Tax Rate From 35 To 25 Percent: A lower corporate tax rate is essential to keeping good jobs in the United States. America was once a low-tax business environment, but as our trade partners lowered their rates, America failed to keep pace. We now have the second highest corporate tax rate in the world, making America a less attractive place for companies to do business. American workers deserve the chance to make fine products here and sell them around the globe.

Allow First-Year Deduction, Or "Expensing", Of Equipment And Technology Investments: American workers need the finest technologies to compete. Expensing of equipment and technology will provide an immediate boost to capital expenditures and reward investments in cutting-edge technologies.

Establish Permanent Tax Credit Equal To 10 Percent Of Wages Spent On R&D: This reform will simplify the tax code, reward activity in the United States, and make us more competitive with other countries. A permanent credit will provide an incentive to innovate and remove uncertainty. At a time when our companies need to be more competitive, we need to provide a permanent incentive to innovate, and remove the uncertainty now hanging over businesses as they make R&D investment decisions.

 

[Glori.B]

"John McCain has a comprehensive economic plan that will create millions of good American jobs, ensure our nation's energy security, get the government's budget and spending practices in order, and bring relief to American consumers. Read each of the sections below to learn how the McCain Economic Plan will help bring reform, prosperity and peace to America."

John McCain 2008 - John McCain for President

Supporting Small Businesses
Lower Energy Costs
John McCain's Lexington Project will address the rising costs of energy that are hurting small businesses. He strongly supports increased domestic exploration of oil and natural gas. This will send a strong signal to oil markets that future supplies will be more plentiful, countering the rise in oil prices. The market for natural gas is less internationally integrated than that of oil - increased domestic production will lower the cost of this key energy source.

The Project will transform electricity generation. John McCain has set the goal of building 45 new nuclear power plants by 2030 - creating 700,000 jobs and providing cheap electricity. It will provide incentives for the production of electricity from renewable sources. Finally, the Lexington Project will devote $2 billion annually to research that will allow the clean use of our most plentiful and low-cost energy source: coal.
Controlling Health Care Costs
John McCain has a comprehensive health care reform plan that will reduce the spiraling cost of health care - a major burden for those small businesses that offer health insurance and a major impediment for those who cannot. He will provide $5,000 for health insurance to every American family - supporting small businesses that seek to offer insurance. John McCain opposes costly mandates or "pay or play" requirements that would raise the financial burden on small business, cut the ability to hire, expand, or raise payrolls.

John McCain's opponent would burden small businesses with roughly $5,000 to $12,000 of extra cost for every employee through his "pay or play" health care mandates. This will stifle new job creation, and it will require small businesses either to cut employees' pay in order to finance this mandate or fire them.
Taxes: Simpler, Fair, Pro-Growth, And Competitive
Keep Tax Rates Low: Entrepreneurs are at the heart of American innovation, growth and prosperity. Entrepreneurs create the ultimate job security - a new, better opportunity if your current job goes away. Entrepreneurs should not be taxed into submission. John McCain will keep the top tax rate at 35 percent, maintain the 15 percent rates on dividends and capital gains, and phase-out the Alternative Minimum Tax. Small businesses are the heart of job growth; raising taxes on them hurts every worker. John McCain's opponent wants to increase the marginal income tax rate which applies to the nation's 23 million small business owners who pay their taxes under the individual tax rate system.

Cut The Corporate Tax Rate From 35 To 25 Percent: A lower corporate tax rate is essential to keeping good jobs in the United States. America was once a low-tax business environment, but as our trade partners lowered their rates, America failed to keep pace. American workers deserve the chance to make fine products here and sell them around the globe.

Allow First-Year Deduction, Or "Expensing", Of Equipment And Technology Investments: American workers need the finest technologies to compete. Expensing of equipment and technology will provide an immediate boost to capital expenditures and reward investments in cutting-edge technologies.

Establish Permanent Tax Credit Equal To 10 Percent Of Wages Spent On R&D: This reform will greatly simplify the tax code, reward activity in the United States, and make us more competitive with other countries. A permanent credit will provide an incentive to innovate and remove uncertainty. At a time when our companies need to be more competitive, we need to provide a permanent incentive to innovate, and remove the uncertainty now hanging over businesses as they make R&D investment decisions.

Allow Families To Keep Their Businesses: John McCain proposes reducing the Estate Tax rate to 15 percent and permit a generous $10 million exemption.
Opening New Markets
John McCain believes that globalization is an opportunity for American workers today and in the future. Ninety-five percent of the world's customers lie outside our borders and we need to be at the table when the rules for access to those markets are written. To do so, the U.S. should engage in multilateral, regional and bilateral efforts to reduce barriers to trade, level the global playing field and build effective enforcement of global trading rules.

Export growth is the strongest part of our sluggish economy, and we should be encouraging the growth of even more jobs in this sector through more free trade agreements which give American firms more access to sell our goods and services abroad.

Click here to read more about the McCain plan for small business.

John McCain 2008 - John McCain for President

 

[Kim]

The vast majority show little or no profit because they distribute it all out before it shows as income. I used to work with a consulting firm that never turned a profit in all their years. They were a lucrative firm, but they basically zeroed the books by distributing all the profits to the employees at year's end and thus never owed a corporate income tax. Of course the employees got hefty tax bills for that....

Someone pays the tax in the end, though, either the employees on their bonuses, the shareholders in capital gains and dividends, or the employers if they turn a profit.

I have been an Accountant for 30 years. Most businesses don't pay income tax. The reason? Because they buy luxury cars, boats, etc. etc. that are for personal use & write them off as business expenses, making sure they don't pay income tax on a company nor on a personal income tax level. On the opposite side, an employee must pay income tax on every dime. This is the reason that most Americans are taxed more than they can afford.

 

[greenpartyaz]

Majority of corporations avoid federal income taxes - study - Aug. 12, 2008

 

[Glori.B]

I have been an Accountant for 30 years. Most businesses don't pay income tax. The reason? Because they buy luxury cars, boats, etc. etc. that are for personal use & write them off as business expenses, making sure they don't pay income tax on a company nor on a personal income tax level. On the opposite side, an employee must pay income tax on every dime. This is the reason that most Americans are taxed more than they can afford.

we should increase the luxury taxes...and impose certain limits on deductions and bonuses.

 

[Zoomie1980]

I have been an Accountant for 30 years. Most businesses don't pay income tax. The reason? Because they buy luxury cars, boats, etc. etc. that are for personal use & write them off as business expenses, making sure they don't pay income tax on a company nor on a personal income tax level. On the opposite side, an employee must pay income tax on every dime. This is the reason that most Americans are taxed more than they can afford.

That';s myth as well. Executives for one simply cannot buy enough boats and things to ever hide profits and doing so beyond legitmate needs is illegal anyway.

99.999% of all executives are honest, fair and hard working and worth every dime they make, and most all of what they make is in options, not raw cash. Those may or may not be worth something when they are exercised and certainly not guaranteed. I know the executives of Union Pacific Railroad, Mutual of Omaha, and ConAgra, all forturne 500 companies and two of the three are very profitable (poor ConAgra can';t get it together...), personally and none of them do any of that nonsense and would never be caught dead doing it. It would be a social disgrace to boot...it's just not done no matter how much urban myth says it is.

Most of the railroad's profits are plowed back into its pension plan. Same with the insurance company. ConAgra just doesn't make much of a profit these days....kind of like the oil companies for most of the past 25 years.

 

[Care4all]

Exxon Mobil has already paid $19.828 billion in income taxes for 2008, and will probably pay close to $40 billion in income taxes by the year'd end.

By contrast, the bottom 50% of taxpayers will pay an estimated $34 billion in income taxes this year. In fact, this will probably be the first time in U.S. history that a single corporation paid more in income taxes than the entire bottom 50% of U.S. taxpayers.

YES! Just as others have STATED, the Corporations did NOT PAY A PENNY for those billions in taxes, WE DID, right?

They put it in to the price of the product they were selling, no?

under that scenario though, the bottom half PAID a great deal MORE in taxes than you and others give them credit for....don't you think?

sooooo, if true that corp taxes are passed on to the consumers, then the lower 50% of tax payers are probably paying their 34 billion PLUS another $20 billion, (50% of the $40 billion Exxon will pay) because they probably buy or consume 50% of their oil or oil byproducts which includes the corporation's tax burden....and even more than that $54 billion because there are other corporate taxes that these lower 50% also pay....right?

hmmmm, definately something to think about....

more or less a corporate tax is a consumption tax added to our own income tax.....

and who says the lower 50% income earners are on the dole and not paying much in taxes? maybe they don't pay a high amount of ''income'' taxes but they sure do pay A LOT more taxes than anyone gives credit too imho!

Care

 

[Kim]

That';s myth as well. Executives for one simply cannot buy enough boats and things to ever hide profits and doing so beyond legitmate needs is illegal anyway.

99.999% of all executives are honest, fair and hard working and worth every dime they make, and most all of what they make is in options, not raw cash. Those may or may not be worth something when they are exercised and certainly not guaranteed. I know the executives of Union Pacific Railroad, Mutual of Omaha, and ConAgra, all forturne 500 companies and two of the three are very profitable (poor ConAgra can';t get it together...), personally and none of them do any of that nonsense and would never be caught dead doing it. It would be a social disgrace to boot...it's just not done no matter how much urban myth says it is.

Most of the railroad's profits are plowed back into its pension plan. Same with the insurance company. ConAgra just doesn't make much of a profit these days....kind of like the oil companies for most of the past 25 years.

Myth? Legal or illegal, they do it. I know this from experience in CPA firms. And don't get me started on Corporate executives. For years, shareholders have been cheated out of reasonable dividends because the corporations' executives are getting exhorbitant pay and benefits - in the millions per executive. And I've seen countless articles reporting the executive salaries of Fortune 500 companies. Many of these individuals make millions while the company goes (or went) bankrupt.

 

[Care4all]

The only thing I might add or question in what I said above is:

how do we know that the corporations, if all corp taxes were removed from them, that they would pass this savings on to the consumer?

There is no guarantee that they would not just "take" the extra profits is there? Especially since the established market price, (that which the consumer is willing to pay), is already a higher price? (that already included their tax burden)

And the other thing to note, is that with government spending the way they have been, if these taxes are not collected from the corporations, then they will have to probably RAISE our OWN income taxes to make up for the difference and how that would be done could be tricky...

And another thing to think about if they did have to raise our income taxes to replace what the corps were paying in taxes, then the Corporations BETTER lower their price of their product instead of keeping their retail prices the same....or we will be paying the high price at Exxon AND additional taxes...SCREWING us, BIG TIME!

care

 

[dilloduck]

Corporations are people. Why do we keep ignoring that ? The government ( also people) takes too damn much money because it's corrupt, inefficient and made way too many promises it can't keep. I don't blame anyone for trying to find a way to pay as little as possible. Make no mistake about it though. We are talking about people here. Pretending they are a "thing" only serves to alienate us and make the problem harder to solve.

 

[Care4all]

Corporations are people. Why do we keep ignoring that ? The government ( also people) takes too damn much money because it's corrupt, inefficient and made way too many promises it can't keep. I don't blame anyone for trying to find a way to pay as little as possible. Make no mistake about it though. We are talking about people here. Pretending they are a "thing" only serves to alienate us and make the problem harder to solve.

too bad those specific ceos taking their millions in salaries while producing a LOSS for those people, you speak about that ''are the corporation''....the stockholders, don't think about that when they are negotiating such!

 

[dilloduck]

too bad those specific ceos taking their millions in salaries while producing a LOSS for those people, you speak about that ''are the corporation''....the stockholders, don't think about that when they are negotiating such!

So why do they put up with it?

 

[Care4all]

So why do they put up with it?

unaware of it, the average joe owns these stocks thru mutual funds, and 401k's and does not watch each stock the mutual fund invests in.,,,due to lack of time and ignorance for the most part....

the board of directors are one and the same as the ceos themselves in many cases...the ceo of one corp is a board member of a non related corp....they scratch eachother's back and are NOT fulfilling the fiduciary duties to the stock holder....if one leaves the door open to greed, greed will take over....seems to be in man's nature, at least with some....not all, but some....deregulation permits the greed to flourish....imo.

care