Corporate Tax Rate

[GoodWitch58]

so often I hear people say "the US has highest corporate tax rate" it happened just now in the thread about Walmart moving manufacturing offshore or to China...

I don't pretend to understand all the nuances of corporate tax, or other tax systems either, but I have heard credible people say that our corporate tax rate is not, in fact, that high. This document seems to support that:
http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/69xx/doc6902/11-28-CorporateTax.pdf

so can someone who has some real knowledge about it-- or some good research point me in the right direction to find some data?

Buz? Shopper? Anyone?

 

[Matt J]

Iceland is lower than ours, look how great their economy is doing.

 

[kkddbb]

Iceland is lower than ours, look how great their economy is doing.

The Irish have the lowest and they are about to get bailed out. Whats your point exactly?

 

[kkddbb]

so often I hear people say "the US has highest corporate tax rate" it happened just now in the thread about Walmart moving manufacturing offshore or to China...

I don't pretend to understand all the nuances of corporate tax, or other tax systems either, but I have heard credible people say that our corporate tax rate is not, in fact, that high. This document seems to support that:
http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/69xx/doc6902/11-28-CorporateTax.pdf

so can someone who has some real knowledge about it-- or some good research point me in the right direction to find some data?

Buz? Shopper? Anyone?

glad you posted this. many on here could use a hand in understanding.

keep in mind, its high corp tax, union pay/pension and huge government regulation combined that put us where we are. Just ask Detroit, NY and Cali. Fact is, we will never be the manufacturing nation we used to be no matter what happens. But, we can hold on to hi-tech jobs over time.

 

[Matt J]

The Irish have the lowest and they are about to get bailed out. Whats your point exactly?

glad you posted this. many on here could use a hand in understanding.

keep in mind, its high corp tax, union pay/pension and huge government regulation combined that put us where we are. Just ask Detroit, NY and Cali. Fact is, we will never be the manufacturing nation we used to be no matter what happens. But, we can hold on to hi-tech jobs over time.

Wiggle all you want, your first post just adds to the point that lowering corporate tax rates isn't a good idea.

BTW, Ireland is coming off of their tech boom.

 

[scooterbug44]

There was a VERY interesting article/graph in National Geographic recently. Let me see if I can find it - basically Delaware's lax rules are a flipping gold mine for businesses and a huge financial drain for the Treasury.

Can't find it - here it is from Economist.

"When one thinks about tax havens, tiny tropical islands and corrupt banana Republics comes to mind. Not so says the Tax Justice Network. Nope it's Delaware, the incorporation haven of the U.S.A.

• There are currently some 695,000 active entities registered in Delaware, including 50 percent of the corporations publically traded on the U.S. stock exchange.
• New business formations in Delaware are currently running at about 130,000 per annum.
• The growth of private individual deposits by non-residents was most robust in the United States outranking other popular financial jurisdictions such as the Cayman Islands, United Kingdom, and Luxembourg with total non-resident deposits equalling $2.6 trillion in 2007.

The Tax Justice Network blames the origins of the financial crisis on offshore tax havens.

Many of the roots of the current global economic crisis trace back to offshore financial centres located in tax havens. These include both those located in the smaller, mostly island states like Cayman and Jersey, and the larger tax havens like the City of London, Switzerland, Dublin, Delaware or Luxembourg."
​

 

[idlewind]

Here is a link to an editiorial that explains the issue:

http://washingtonexaminer.com/editorials/2008/10/high-corporate-taxes-hurt-real-economy?category=1529#ixzz17oA3FpCi

The key is found in this passage:

"These rates matter greatly, because corporations don?t pay taxes, the customers of corporations pay taxes through higher prices, or, for stockholders (again, including pensioners, including union pensions) in lower financial returns."
​

Corporate taxes are passed to the consumer through higher prices. This creates a disadvantage to our industry and contributes to the deficit that no one talks about: the trade deficit.

​

 

[GoodWitch58]

Here is a link to an editiorial that explains the issue:

http://washingtonexaminer.com/editorials/2008/10/high-corporate-taxes-hurt-real-economy?category=1529#ixzz17oA3FpCi

The key is found in this passage:

"These rates matter greatly, because corporations don?t pay taxes, the customers of corporations pay taxes through higher prices, or, for stockholders (again, including pensioners, including union pensions) in lower financial returns."
​

Corporate taxes are passed to the consumer through higher prices. This creates a disadvantage to our industry and contributes to the deficit that no one talks about: the trade deficit.

​

Thanks for posting, but this is an opinion piece from a ultra-conservative publication...and there is no attribution for the figures/information used.

I understand the passing to the consumer, etc., what I am trying to find is an objective source for the actual corporate tax rate...and how it is determined...data that I find shows it is not that high; I have heard many interviews from economists who support that opinion; yet, every Republican elected official and all the conservative publications and news shows tell a different story...so, where does the true fall--somewhere in between probably.

 

[idlewind]

Thanks for posting, but this is an opinion piece from a ultra-conservative publication...and there is no attribution for the figures/information used.

I understand the passing to the consumer, etc., what I am trying to find is an objective source for the actual corporate tax rate...and how it is determined...data that I find shows it is not that high; I have heard many interviews from economists who support that opinion; yet, every Republican elected official and all the conservative publications and news shows tell a different story...so, where does the true fall--somewhere in between probably.

My understanding is that the nominal rates are between 15-39%. The actual rates vary by company due to the myrid of exemptions, deductions and credits that are contained in the Federal tax code. So, just as with individuals, the bottom and top of the income scale pay little and the middle pays the bulk of the taxes. The unfairness problem with the tax code is not the nominal rates but the effect all the exemptions and deductions have on the true rates.

 

[Matt J]

My understanding is that the nominal rates are between 15-39%. The actual rates vary by company due to the myrid of exemptions, deductions and credits that are contained in the Federal tax code. So, just as with individuals, the bottom and top of the income scale pay little and the middle pays the bulk of the taxes. The unfairness problem with the tax code is not the nominal rates but the effect all the exemptions and deductions have on the true rates.

Not to mention corporate welfare, I'm betting many companies actually don't pay anything and in fact get paid to be in business.