Here comes the next big one. Now that the corporations have fast-track trade authority in the bag, they are trying to push a huge, huge tax giveaway through Congress. We have to get the word out so this doesn't just sneak through. We can't let them continue to rig the system against us like this.
Up To $770 Billion Is Owed On $2.2 Trillion In Corporate Profits Stashed In Tax Havens
You might have heard about all that money the giant corporations have been stashing in tax havens so they can dodge paying their taxes. You might not have heard how much they owe us. Corporations have somewhere around $2.2 billion of "offshore" profits stashed in tax havens. They owe up to 35 percent in taxes on that money. That's right; they owe up to $770 billion that We the People could have right now for our roads, schools, health care, scientific research, space exploration, to forgive student debt ... we could have free college tuition, expand Social Security, high-speed rail across the country.... Instead, we're told we can't have these things because there are "budget deficits."
And on top of that, at least another $50 billion per year of tax money is kept from us because of this scam.
Congress could just tell these corporations to pay up, and We the People would have up to $770 billion to use to make our lives better, and another $50 billion or more each year.
See if you can guess what Congress is getting ready to do instead?
Tax Holiday
Right now the giant, multinational corporations owe up to $770 billion in taxes on the $2.2 trillion they are holding outside the country in tax-haven mailbox subsidiaries. Right now. They have the cash in the bank (in tax-haven countries) and could write checks tomorrow if Congress told them to. Again, this is taxes they already owe but haven't paid. Think of the things our country could do with that money.
But instead ...
Congress is proposing to give these companies a tax holiday and let them off from paying the taxes they already owe on that money. There is all kinds of complicated language being used to mask what is happening, but it's really simple: Some members of Congress are proposing letting them off from the taxes they already owe on "offshore" profits, and then letting them off from paying taxes on future profits made "outside the country" from now on.
For example, the Charles Schumer-Rob Portman bill in the Senate will tax this money (on which 35 percent is already owed), "at a rate significantly lower than the statutory corporate rate." And then it will cut tax rates on future "offshore" profits forever.
Quick question: For years these companies have been moving jobs, production and profit centers out of the country to take advantage of this tax dodge. If they are rewarded for this with this huge tax cut, how many more companies will move jobs, production and profit centers out of the country from now on? Bonus question: Will there be any jobs, production or profit centers left inside the U.S. if Congress lets companies off the hook from taxes on profits made from moving jobs, production and profits centers out of the country?
Don't Let this Sneak Past Us
The corporations and billionaires count on these things sneaking through under cover of complicated language, so we never find out what is happening to us. Later they tell us "we're broke" and there is no way to "pay for" things like roads, schools, and other needs. They tell us we have "deficits" that could "bankrupt" us, so college tuition has to go up, we have to pay to use toll roads, they have to cut funding for schools, we can't have high-speed rail, they can't afford to do scientific research or space exploration or fight global warming or fix up national parks, and so on.
But what is really going on is the game is being rigged. Corporations get huge tax breaks and subsidies, a few billionaires and plutocrats get the cash, and We the People, the 99 percent, have to make up the difference.
We need to get the word out about this. This is the next big one they are trying to slip through before we know what is happening to us.
We have to fight this. We have to make noise. Even if we don't win this, at least we will know what happened this time. Then, later, when they come back and say there's no money to do things that make our lives better, we will be able to see through the smokescreen. We will know where the money went, and eventually enough people will understand how the game is being rigged – and stop it.
Congress should tell the giant, multinational corporations that it is time to pay the taxes the already owe on "offshore" profits. They should not reward companies for moving jobs, production and profit centers out of our country.
----
This post originally appeared at Campaign for America's Future (CAF) at their Blog for OurFuture. I am a Fellow with CAF. Sign up here for the CAF daily summary and/or for the Progress Breakfast.
