Got this email from Dianne Feinstein this morning. I bolded the portion that talks about fixing tax loopholes.
Thank you for contacting me to express your concerns about the current corporate tax rate. I appreciate the time you took to write and apologize for the delay in my response.
As you may know, the United States corporate tax code currently features a statutory top-bracket tax rate of 35 percent. However, most companies – even the country's most profitable corporations – pay nowhere near this rate due to a complex system of deductions and loopholes that serve to subsidize specific industries. Both ExxonMobil and General Electric, for example, reported no tax liability to the Internal Revenue Service in 2009, and a 2008 report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that approximately two-thirds of all corporations paid no federal income tax in 2005. Though some companies were not profitable and therefore had no tax liability, the report raised serious concerns.
On December 1, 2010, after numerous meetings and hearings, President Obama's bipartisan 18-member National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform published its final report. Tasked with developing a comprehensive strategy for reducing our nation's burgeoning debt and deficit, the report puts forth an aggressive deficit reduction strategy and calls for a wide-ranging overhaul of the current tax code. Specifically, the Commission recommends reducing the corporate tax rate from 35 percent rate to between 23 percent and 29 percent, while eliminating all existing tax expenditures and loopholes for businesses. The Commission argues that by closing these loopholes and lowering the nominal rate, the United States can bring clarity to the system and make America a more competitive place to do business in the global economy.
On February 14, 2011 President Obama endorsed reform of corporate taxation by proposing to eliminate of a number of existing corporate tax deductions and loopholes in his Fiscal Year 2012 Budget Proposal to Congress. I understand you are also in support of closing corporate tax loopholes, and I will be sure to keep your comments in mind as I consider tax-related legislation in the 112th Congress.
Once again, thank you for writing. If you have any additional questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact my Washington, D.C. office at (202) 224-3841. Best regards.
Got this email from Dianne Feinstein this morning. I bolded the portion that talks about fixing tax loopholes.
Thank you for contacting me to express your concerns about the current corporate tax rate. I appreciate the time you took to write and apologize for the delay in my response.
As you may know, the United States corporate tax code currently features a statutory top-bracket tax rate of 35 percent. However, most companies – even the country's most profitable corporations – pay nowhere near this rate due to a complex system of deductions and loopholes that serve to subsidize specific industries. Both ExxonMobil and General Electric, for example, reported no tax liability to the Internal Revenue Service in 2009, and a 2008 report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that approximately two-thirds of all corporations paid no federal income tax in 2005. Though some companies were not profitable and therefore had no tax liability, the report raised serious concerns.
On December 1, 2010, after numerous meetings and hearings, President Obama's bipartisan 18-member National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform published its final report. Tasked with developing a comprehensive strategy for reducing our nation's burgeoning debt and deficit, the report puts forth an aggressive deficit reduction strategy and calls for a wide-ranging overhaul of the current tax code. Specifically, the Commission recommends reducing the corporate tax rate from 35 percent rate to between 23 percent and 29 percent, while eliminating all existing tax expenditures and loopholes for businesses. The Commission argues that by closing these loopholes and lowering the nominal rate, the United States can bring clarity to the system and make America a more competitive place to do business in the global economy.
On February 14, 2011 President Obama endorsed reform of corporate taxation by proposing to eliminate of a number of existing corporate tax deductions and loopholes in his Fiscal Year 2012 Budget Proposal to Congress. I understand you are also in support of closing corporate tax loopholes, and I will be sure to keep your comments in mind as I consider tax-related legislation in the 112th Congress.
Once again, thank you for writing. If you have any additional questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact my Washington, D.C. office at (202) 224-3841. Best regards.
Sincerely yours,
Dianne Feinstein
United States Senator
#politics