Ten giant U.S. companies avoiding income taxes: Sen. Bernie Sanders list

[cali]

By Lynn Sweet on March 27, 2011 9:54 AM | No Comments

WASHINGTON---With federal income taxes due in a few weeks, Sen. Bernie Sanders, the Vermont independent allied with Democrats on Sunday released a list of ten big profitable U.S. companies paying little or no taxes. Sanders wants to close the loopholes that make this tax avoidance legal. Some people call the income tax system with generous loopholes for big companies corporate welfare or corporate entitlements. As Congress returns to work this week--after yet another break--to negotiate over big budget cuts--with social safety net programs facing reductions--Sanders is pushing for corporations to pay more of a fair "share."

The Bernie Sanders Ten, per release....

1) Exxon Mobil made $19 billion in profits in 2009. Exxon not only paid no federal income taxes, it actually received a $156 million rebate from the IRS, according to its SEC filings.

2) Bank of America received a $1.9 billion tax refund from the IRS last year, although it made $4.4 billion in profits and received a bailout from the Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department of nearly $1 trillion.

3) Over the past five years, while General Electric made $26 billion in profits in the United States, it received a $4.1 billion refund from the IRS.

4) Chevron received a $19 million refund from the IRS last year after it made $10 billion in profits in 2009.

5) Boeing, which received a $30 billion contract from the Pentagon to build 179 airborne tankers, got a $124 million refund from the IRS last year.

6) Valero Energy, the 25th largest company in America with $68 billion in sales last year received a $157 million tax refund check from the IRS and, over the past three years, it received a $134 million tax break from the oil and gas manufacturing tax deduction.

7) Goldman Sachs in 2008 only paid 1.1 percent of its income in taxes even though it earned a profit of $2.3 billion and received an almost $800 billion from the Federal Reserve and U.S. Treasury Department.

8) Citigroup last year made more than $4 billion in profits but paid no federal income taxes. It received a $2.5 trillion bailout from the Federal Reserve and U.S. Treasury.

9) ConocoPhillips, the fifth largest oil company in the United States, made $16 billion in profits from 2007 through 2009, but received $451 million in tax breaks through the oil and gas manufacturing deduction.

10) Over the past five years, Carnival Cruise Lines made more than $11 billion in profits, but its federal income tax rate during those years was just 1.1 percent.

<snip>

http://blogs.suntimes.com/sweet/2011/03/ten_giant_us_companies_avoidin.html

[aquart]

1. Unpatriotic moochers.

[spooked911]

38. exactly

I can understand a corporation wanting to avoid taxes... but take money from the govt? It's simply disgusting.

[xchrom]

2. tax the rich, end corporate welfare, end our 'free trade' agreements, cut the MIC in half. nt

[Oceansaway]

3. K&R...n/t

[Scuba]

4. This fight needs a couple bad guys. Good for Bernie....

...I always thought BHO should have spilled the salary and bonuses of the top health insurance companies during the HCR battle.

[Bluzmann57]

5. In other words...

I have $33.00 in my wallet right now and that is more than nine of the largest corporations in the world paid in taxes. Just how screwed up is that?

[BobbyBoring]

51. You still have a wallet??

Lucky You!

[SOS]

53. And if you paid even $1 in federal income tax in 2009

you paid more than these 10 corporations combined.

I made $22K last year and paid more federal tax than Exxon.

This country has truly lost it's way.

[democrank]

6. K & R

[kestrel91316]

7. Tax cheats that big need to be nationalized. Simply seize them.

Turn their assets over to WE THE PEOPLE.

[TahitiNut]

9. Agreed.

Since they want to BE the government, just nationalize 'em and make their wish come true.

[hughee99]

12. If none of these companies broke the law in the process of avoiding taxes,

perhaps we should be taking a closer look at the tax laws and those who wrote them.

[bighart]

40. The federal employees they bougt and paid for are doing their jobs.

Take corporate money out of the campaign process and push for tax reform for corporations. Only give tax incentives to developing alternative energy and infrastructure rebuilding.

[SnakeEyes]

25. It's not tax cheating

If it were the IRS would actually be on them. These are HUGE sums of money. The problem is the ridiculous number of tax credits and deductions that exist. If I qualified, I'd take them too.

It's not just big business and CEOs either. Even those not nearly as wealthy but rich, such as celebrities do it too. Bruce Springsteen only pays $100 a year because he raises bees on his property and gets a farm subsidy for it. Same with Bon Jovi since an organic farmer manages the land.

[TahitiNut]

8. It's unfortunate those are called "refunds" ... when they're NOT

When you and I get a "refund," we actually have to PAY something more to get part of it back as a "refund."


:shrug: Once upon a time, there was an idea that 'welfare' should be implemented as a "negative income tax" -- where some minimum livable income was guaranteed. Sadly, this is nothing more than corporate welfare WITHOUT means testing.

[Kablooie]

10. But they make it up by accepting subsidies.

[Snoutport]

11. kr

[ixion]

13. Funny how that same group of cos always show up on the lists

of companies screwing us over.

[indepat]

14. The craven truth is our major branches of government would rather gut social security and Medicare

than require these behemoths to share the tax burden: remember, the gipper had though only people should pay income taxes. :patriot:

[freshwest]

23. The other problem is that 37% of the public, and all the media, think this is how it oughta be.

The public that support it either hope to get jobs from them, have stock or pensions with them or believe in trickle down.

The media of course is owned by these monsters.

And the fundies and dominionists, even some new agers will argue that they shouldn't be taxed, because they are really better people.

[bighart]

41. It's because the corporations have all been "generous with campain contributions".

[TNLib]

15. That's just really sad

and depressing.

[City Lights]

16. K&R. nt

[leveymg]

17. The only reason the US was able to absorb WW2 debt was the 15% effective tax rate on corps.

The marginal rate on business profits was 52% at that time.

If big companies no longer pay any taxes, then public debt becomes a major problem. I for one don't think the 1950s was such a bad environment for business in America, do you?

[Urban Prairie]

21. Nope, just not as PURELY profitable for the greedy thieving bastards n/t

[felix_numinous]

18. So tax evasion lis legal?

[steelmania75]

19. I love Bernie Sanders.

Please challenge Obama.

[WillyT]

20. Go Bernie !!! - K & R !!!

:kick:

[Raine]

22. Anti-American welfare moochers

bascially traitors to the country that made them wealthy. All they do is live off the "fat" of the land and give nothing in return. :mad: :grr: :nuke:

[glinda]

24. Freeloaders! Thieves!

:mad: :nuke: :grr:

[denbot]

26. K & R

I wonder if the reason more people are not enraged is because most don't realize how little corporations actually do pay in taxes.
Gee, if only we had the bully pulpit during an election.

[Beartracks]

27. Wow! We should be expecting job creation any day now!!!

Eh?

What do you mean they've had huge tax cuts since Bush was in office? Well, how in hell did we LOSE jobs if corporate tax cuts CREATE jobs?

Well, not to worry -- MORE tax cuts for corporations will surely bring those jobs back lickety-split!

What? Of COURSE I mean American jobs. Why WOULDN'T international corporations create those soon-to-be-here-any-day-now jobs in America?

Don't worry, these are AMERICAN companies! They will do the right thing, the patriotic thing! Why do you hate America?

<changing subject> Look! A public school teacher! Her pension ruined my mortgage and made my neighbors turn gay! Get her!




:sarcasm: for the sarcasm-impaired :D

------------------------------

[dogday]

28. This makes me very sick. Sick of the lies, the corrupt

money grubbing, the selfish stingy miserly rich that want their profits and our taxes we work hard for...

[WCGreen]

29. Perhaps someone should compare those refunds and lack of taxes

with the number of Jobs they have created over the last 5 years...

That is what their minions in DC are always going on about when they are confronted with the granting these tax in centives...

K & R

[Shiver]

30. Gah... wow, I must be tired. I accidentally unrec'd this...

:blush:

[ThomCat]

31. The taxation department in many big corporations are expected to

turn a profit! They are not there to pay taxes. They are there to manipulate the books in every legal way possible, (and in any other way they can get away with) and utilize all available tax havens and loopholes, and make sure that the parent company and the subsidiaries together end up paying an overall negative amount in taxes, and get money back in rebates.

Those rebates mean that taxes become a profit-making part of their business. In some cases, a very serious and substantial part of their business.

Taxes aren't some "oh, by the way" thing they look at quarterly as an afterthought. They have taxes figured out every bit as thoroughly as the core elements of their business.

[JJW]

32. THe Best "for-profit" Universities

teach their business students, how to be greedy pigs and modern day pirates.

[harun]

47. +1, it's no wonder they behave that way when they start working.

[davidthegnome]

33. K & R

I'd rec this a million times if I could. This needs to be shared, spread - advertised all over the place. Thank you, Mr. Sanders.

[dotymed]

34. I read an article about this, last week.

The tax dept. of these corporations are now considered big money makers instead of liabilities within the corporation. The article stated that these corporations hire retiring, upper-management from the U.S. treasury dept. and I.R.S. to make sure that every loophole is taken full advantage of.
None of these corporations give a damn about America, yet when they have a problem, they expect us to rescue them, and ultimately pay for doing so.
It is a nightmare come true.
Wall Street Government.
One President decades ago (Eisenhower?), approached G.E. when they did this exact same "tax trick" and threatened to cause them trouble. They paid up without the tricks.
Never happen with a WALL STREET GOVERNMENT.
Please watch "INSIDE JOB" and have your eyes opened even wider....

[fasttense]

35. At the very least they should stop getting huge tax refunds without paying any taxes. n/t

[spooked911]

39. agree totally

this is insanity

[TBF]

36. Recommended. nt

[ck4829]

37. K&R

[TxVietVet]

42. I remember when issues like this came up when ronnie raygun was pretzeldent.

If I remember correctly (please correct me if I'm not),there was an outrage about these companies like Mobil having almost most no tax bill on hundreds of millions of profit. The effective tax rate on those guys was something on the line of .something%, while working folks paid dearly. Braindead raygun's new tax bill, which passed, had taken out the mortgage deductions for vacation/2nd homes. Spermdonor Whimp bu$h had a vacation home in Maine and was livid because of raygun's tax bill. Of course at the time, bu$h's home was the Houstonian Hotel (I believe that was the name). he and his momma, Babs, stayed there for political functions in Houston.

Now, where is the outrage? Have we become so greedy that now we want to penalize those that don't make any money in order to finance those that have tones of it? I don't get it.

[OwnedByFerrets]

43. Wait just a damn minute...they DO pay their dues....its just

in the form of BUYING POLITICIANS. The NEW American Way.

[wildbilln864]

44. k&r! nt

[Texano78704]

45. So why was 60 Minutes saying they have the highest rates?

Didn't see all of it, but there was an awful lot of moaning and groaning about how bad corporations have it due to the US having one of the highest corporate tax rates. Too bad they don't actually pay that rate.

[FailureToCommunicate]

46. ***gnashing teeth while filling out this years tax forms***

(I know, what a sucker. If only I had a tax department with -how many did Rachel Maddow say B of A had?- 600 + employees!!)

[avaistheone1]

48. k&r

[RedCloud]

49. Put the workers in charge. They will do the right thing.

[groundloop]

50. I've got an issue with a few items on this hit list. "Refund" doesn't always equal not paying....

"Chevron received a $19 million refund from the IRS last year after it made $10 billion in profits in 2009" doesn't necessarily equate to Chevron didn't pay taxes. I receive a refund every year because of the fact that I overpay the government a little bit every payday.

I'm wondering if a few of these shouldn't be on the list. As far as the corporations listed that truly didn't pay taxes, yes - put their slimy names on the front page of every newspaper. But we need to be accurate with the facts.

[colsohlibgal]

52. By All Means Watch "Inside Job"

You'll see how Wall Street and big business is screwing us every day of the week and getting filthy rich while doing it.

We keep hearing we have a debt problem when really we have a revenue problem because of freeloading big business and the wealthy, gilded set - combined with a ridiculously bloated defense budget, it is crippling us.

The only way to change things is to have people pay attention and actually think things through logically. Logic is the big problem with the Tea Party - they have every right to be mad as hell, they're just mad about the wrong things.

Obama veered the wrong way economically right away hooking his financial outlook to the Rubin/Greenspan crowd - Greenspan having been wrong about almost everything, Greenspan who allegedly told Brooksley Born that he didn't see a problem with financial fraud!

It's just all so easy for some of us to connect these massive dots, for the life of me I don't know why so many have not. So many who still believe it's a few welfare cheats who are causing our financial problems - when it's a minor drop in the bucket.

[AlbertCat]

54. Remember, Clinton imposed a mandatory minimum Corporate tax

based on European tax rates. Something like 17%.

This greatly contributed to the surplus.



And to the all important National hunt for the whereabouts of Clinton's cock.

[Pryderi]

55. Has anyone factchecked these claims? n/t

[Here4DaLinks]

56. But, but, but...if we tax them, they'll leave to another country!

Transnational Corporate Mafia: "Tax me and I'll leave, collapsing your economy."

I'm not sure what the answer is, but the fact that
these corporate 'people' pay a lower tax rate than I do? Depressing.

Apparently, we're doing a global race to the bottom.