Huge Corporate Profits- so Why do They Need a Tax Cut?

a reply to: AugustusMasonicus

I seriously doubt that the equation is as easy as each of us keyboard warriors think it is.

There are many many corps (GE comes to mind) that pay zero taxes. If a corp is going to any country to "invert" it fits into a very complicated tax abatement plan to save $$$$.

originally posted by: seasonal
I seriously doubt that the equation is as easy as each of us keyboard warriors think it is.

The point is they wouldn't need to explore these options if our corporate rate wasn't insane.

Who it really hurts are small businesses that cannot invert or employ an army of lawyers and accountants to help find these loopholes or negotiate the deals.

a reply to: AugustusMasonicus

With Apple's net worth totaling almost a trillion dollars, its easy to see the effects of their move.

originally posted by: eManym
With Apple's net worth totaling almost a trillion dollars, its easy to see the effects of their move.

I would personally prefer that money were here but I do understand their rationale for moving it overseas.

How about making it illegal to take a raw material of any sort developed/gathered in a particular country, for it to be transformed at a cheaper rate in another country, and returned to a country afterwards? This would reduce ecological footprint, create jobs in the country itself, and then you could do what you want with taxes and corporations would be left with 2 choices...close and go elsewhere, or contribute to the particular country you are trying to do business in.

Choose to leave with your business? Fine, I'm not selling you my wood so you can transform it elsewhere, I'm not selling you my milk so you can turn it into cheese either, etc.. See how long these corporations would be in business for if they have no goods to transform in third world countries for dirt cheap.

I live in Canada, and we sell our resources such as our wood, our chicken, our milk, our beef, our water, and so many other things at a cheaper rate to other countries for them to transform it, and sell it back to us at a profit! Then, these corporations take these profits and hide some of it in tax havens to avoid paying our government taxes(Oh yea, and our prime minister seems to be using these tax havens too...LOL). Sadly, the shareholders behind company A and Company B offshore, are likely similar!

Sorry...kind of went on a rant here..

a reply to: AugustusMasonicus

IF the corps are indeed people, they need to pay their taxes or face the IRS.

originally posted by: seasonal
IF the corps are indeed people, they need to pay their taxes or face the IRS.

They don't pay tax now, we, the end users, pay it.

I doubt that a corporation tax cut will be invested in paying an American worker a decent wage. It will go to profit. Note what happened in Kansas when taxes were cut for businesses.

Best a person can do is avoid as many American overseas company products and services as possible.

a reply to: AugustusMasonicus

We (the consumer) also pay for raw materials. I fail to see why a corp that enjoys all the benefits of being a person should be deprived of paying their taxes.

Running a govt is very very expensive.

originally posted by: AugustusMasonicus

originally posted by: eManym
With Apple's net worth totaling almost a trillion dollars, its easy to see the effects of their move.

I would personally prefer that money were here but I do understand their rationale for moving it overseas.

The feds need to first figure out how to legislate against off-shoring corporate cash. At 35%, anyone in business would do whatever it takes (legally) to avoid paying that much. It's highway robbery. Lower the rate to make it reasonable and block off-shoring and we might keep the money at home.

Apple

After the US technology colossus stated publicly in 2013 that it was paying its proper share of taxes, it moved the bulk of its untaxed overseas cash to the Channel Islands jurisdiction Jersey, the New York Times and BBC reported based on a once-secret cache of documents referred to as the Paradise Papers.

a reply to: LogicalGraphitti
20 big profitable US companies paid no taxes
www.cnbc.com...

Large companies find ways to a zero tax rate
www.usatoday.com...

a reply to: UndeadWarrior

That is a really interesting thought.

Maybe we could develop something similar with the profits as well? Profits where you sell the product could also be prohibited from moving too far away, certainly not leaving the country of origin and possibly restrict them from moving beyond the state level. That would do a lot to remove the profitability of these huge conglomerates.

Make the corporations serve the people and not the other way around. Remove the profitability in centralization and monopolies.

a reply to: eManym
Goodness back in the terrible 50's when those sucky pensions good pay-benefits it looks like the corp rates were quite high.
This is a money making move.



Does anyone think that a 10% reduction in corp taxes is going to lead to a reduction in cost of products/services? HA HA HA HA HA.
Does anyone think a reduction of 10% in corp taxes going to lead to a hiring spreee of good paying jobs in the US? HA HA HA HA HA HA

originally posted by: schuyler
BECAUSE the Federal tax rate for corporations is among the HIGHEST of any country at 35%. If you want productivity to rise, you cut taxes.

B.S.

Productivity in the U.S. has been and still is one of the best in the world, profits seem to support that. What we haven't seen is a similar rise in wages for the Average American factoring out Inflation , since the late 70's.

Most Americans don't want productivity to rise they want wages to rise.

Middle America got squeezed for profit for far too long, time to get some more juice in them before you squeeze again.

a reply to: pavil

(million stars)

a reply to: ClovenSky

The problem is, it can't work because of world economy. What will happen to any country trying to do something of the sorts? It would be seen and sold to the public as an attack on world trade, not as an attack on corporate profits...

originally posted by: LogicalGraphitti

originally posted by: AugustusMasonicus

originally posted by: eManym
With Apple's net worth totaling almost a trillion dollars, its easy to see the effects of their move.

I would personally prefer that money were here but I do understand their rationale for moving it overseas.

The feds need to first figure out how to legislate against off-shoring corporate cash. At 35%, anyone in business would do whatever it takes (legally) to avoid paying that much. It's highway robbery. Lower the rate to make it reasonable and block off-shoring and we might keep the money at home.

Apple

After the US technology colossus stated publicly in 2013 that it was paying its proper share of taxes, it moved the bulk of its untaxed overseas cash to the Channel Islands jurisdiction Jersey, the New York Times and BBC reported based on a once-secret cache of documents referred to as the Paradise Papers.

That's the real issue, not the high tax rate here.....the Multi-Nationals will always move their money to the least taxed area, whether legal or moral. Even if we lowered the Corp rate to 15%, they would still park as much money as possible in zero rate Havens.

There needs to be a mechanism to harshly punish those that skirt their taxes by keeping money abroad with financial shenanigans.

because greed is exponential and the greediest have ZERO concept of the word 'enough'.
they want it all. at any and all cost to everyone and anyone else.

a reply to: pavil

I was going to respond something similar as well...Wages increase on average by less than 2% for the common person, while corporate profits increase and tax rates(and ways to avoid taxes) continue to increase.

I work for the devil. How did we deal with how much staff we needed for the next fiscal year? Take last years staff number, slash it by 2% because we averaged a 2% salary increase...that is how many people we will employ next year, whether it's what we need to serve our customers or not. Why, because the shareholders have a very specific and set profit goal for the fiscal year, which is about 20% higher than when i started there a few years ago. As you may imagine by my tone, we are talking multi billion dollar profits..

I will not say more, because it would get me fired(and actually...that statement would probably get me fired if it was traced back to my person, let's hope ATS will not provide my personal email address to anyone other than law enforcement in the case of breaking the law, which I have not done here on ATS!)

a reply to: RoScoLaz5

It's a sickness They become consumed by profits, it is a battle of the biggest bank account. Luckily, some of them realize they are sick. It doesn't stop them, but when the people and governments of the world change...some of these sick men and women will follow suit!