Dodging Repatriation Tax Lets U.S. Companies Bring Home Cash

[Joanne98]

Source: Bloomberg

At the White House on Dec. 15, business executives asked President Obama for a tax holiday that would help them tap more than $1 trillion of offshore earnings, much of it sitting in island tax havens.

The money -- including hundreds of billions in profits that U.S. companies attribute to overseas subsidiaries to avoid taxes -- is supposed to be taxed at up to 35 percent when it’s brought home, or “repatriated.” Executives including John T. Chambers of Cisco Systems Inc. say a tax break would return a flood of cash and boost the economy.

What nobody’s saying publicly is that U.S. multinationals are already finding legal ways to avoid that tax. Over the years, they’ve brought cash home, tax-free, employing strategies with nicknames worthy of 1970s conspiracy thrillers -- including “the Killer B” and “the Deadly D.”

Merck & Co Inc., the second-largest drugmaker in the U.S., last year brought more than $9 billion from abroad without paying any U.S. tax to help finance its acquisition of Schering- Plough Corp., securities filings show. Merck is also appealing a federal judge’s 2009 finding that Schering-Plough owed taxes on $690 million it had earlier brought home from overseas tax-free.



Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-12-29/dodging-repatriation-tax-lets-u-s-companies-bring-home-cash.html

---

The rich want other tax cut already!

[Hawkeye-X]

1. The admin should DENY, and ask the island nations to remove the tax haven mark or face

sanctions. Heavy sanctions.

Hawkeye-X

[flamin lib]

5. Just pull a Reagan and invade them. Annex and grant statehood

to the P.O. boxes . . . just the boxes, leave the rest of the country as-is.

[freshwest]

16. The first and only war I'll endorse! Bwahaha!

[xchrom]

2. goddamn them.

pay your taxes traitors!

[atreides1]

3. Now it's wait and see

[MsLeopard]

15. Wait for it

There will be a Friday afternoon news dump soon that gives them exactly what they asked for. Given the history, I assume when they asked Obama to let them bring obsecene profits into the country at no tax, the reply was, "Say no more! Done!"

[PSPS]

4. "the uncompetitive U.S. tax structure"

Such a move “is a short-term fix to a long-term problem, which is the uncompetitive U.S. tax structure,” said Cisco spokeswoman Jennifer Greeson Dunn. The San Jose, California- based company reported $31.6 billion of undistributed foreign earnings, on which it had paid no U.S. taxes, as of July 31.

President Obama, who campaigned in part against companies’ use of offshore havens to avoid U.S. taxes, asked Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner to follow up on the issue with business leaders, according to a White House official who asked not to be identified because the discussions were private.

The argument that a new tax break for offshore earnings would generate a domestic stimulus “holds no water at all,” said Joel B. Slemrod, an economics professor at the University of Michigan’s school of business and former senior tax economist for President Reagan’s Council of Economic Advisers. U.S. companies are already sitting on a record pile of cash -- $1.9 trillion in liquid assets, according to Federal Reserve data.

I guess it will be viewed as imperative that we have to have the lowest tax rates (for corporations and the rich) in the world, lest we become "uncompetitive." And now that Obama has been revealed as another acolyte for the "trickle down" Reagan nonsense, we'll see more of this outrageous behavior.

[Hawkeye-X]

10. Here's your fucking problem right there:

Cisco spokeswoman Jennifer Greeson Dunn. The San Jose, California- based company reported $31.6 billion of undistributed foreign earnings, on which it had paid no U.S. taxes, as of July 31.


31.6b in undistributed foreign earnings. That means offshore proftis. It needs to be taxed on all foreign investment to ensure that the corporation fatcats pay their fucking share.

[Heywood J]

6. If they're laundering money to avoid taxes...

Merck & Co Inc., the second-largest drugmaker in the U.S., last year brought more than $9 billion from abroad without paying any U.S. tax to help finance its acquisition of Schering- Plough Corp., securities filings show

Then void about $9 billion of their patents as punishment.

[Hawkeye-X]

11. 200% tax

make them pay 18 billion. They can afford it:


Cisco spokeswoman Jennifer Greeson Dunn. The San Jose, California- based company reported $31.6 billion of undistributed foreign earnings, on which it had paid no U.S. taxes, as of July 31.

[Historic NY]

7. Ill-gotten gain off shore money laundering operations....

that these coproration run....tax holiday my ass.

[Mika]

8. Every cent of the repatriated money will go out as dividends @ 15% tax rate.

Boost the economy? Who's economy?

---

[Joanne98]

21. Yep

[mikekohr]

9. UPS, A Corporate Sponsor Of “The Contract On America,” Has An Overseas Shell Corporation

based in Bermuda, named Overseas Partners Limited (OPL). The sole purpose of this shell corporation is avoidance of United States income taxes. The IRS won the largest back taxes judgment in history against them in the late 1990’s. The Bush administration dropped the case during the appeals process.

The overwhelming percentage of profits that are funneled to this tax avoidance shelter are revenues generated within the borders of the United States, on tax payer funded infrastructure, roads, airports, etc. UPS like hundreds or thousands of US corporation engaged in such shenanigans are Tax Traitors, pure and simple.

[safeinOhio]

12. How about, slam shut the loop-holes

and throw the bastards in jail, or off with their heads?

[freshwest]

18. The guillotine is thirsty! Hurry up!

Oh, no, just get the money they stole back here.

[mbperrin]

13. Have I mentioned today how much I hate greedy corporate bastards

and wish they would all burst spontaneously into flames?

Consider I did even if I didn't.

[freshwest]

17. I can't say that too much myself. Thanks for reminding me!

[L0oniX]

14. Thanks again Obama ...thanks for caring about the rest of us.

:mad:

[DallasNE]

19. But Bush Already Gave Them A Tax Holiday

It is their own fault if they didn't bring home the money then, when it was completely legal. And how much of a boost to the economy did it give back then? What a bunch of cry babies and such liars.

[tomm2thumbs]

20. Whoever asked that should have been grabbed by the collar and booted out to awaiting press

SHAME THE MOTHERF*CKERS at the very least dammit - it costs nothing

[Kip Humphrey]

22. at which point does this become extortion?

[Grins]

23. Sure! Here's the deal...

Every $25 you spend IN THE UNITED STATES on NEW HIRING, and construction, you get to bring $1 home, tax-free.

You first. Oh, and bite me.