Oregon Business Report: Taxing corporate profits on per-country basis
Rep. Peter DeFazio introduced legislation to discourage multinational corporations from moving abroad by taxing corporate profits on a per-country basis
Do the B Team’s Tax Principles Raise or Lower the Bar? A Debate with TJN
On February 1, the B Team published “A New Bar for Responsible Tax: The B Team Responsible Tax Principles,” with the endorsement of nine corporations (Allianz, BHP, Maersk, Natura, Repsol, Safaricom, Shell, Unilever and Vodafone). I was privileged to serve as a member of the Company Working Group that oversaw the development of the Principles over the course of 2017, representing an investor perspective.
After several years of engagement with a variety of corporations on these issues on behalf of Domini Impact Investments, I am optimistic that the B Team’s work establishes a promising platform for meaningful dialogue with corporations about their tax practices. The Principles are not perfect, but I believe they represent an important step forward.
I was therefore very disappointed to see TJN’s critique of the Principles, The B-Team: Lowering the bar for tax transparency? I reached out to Alex Cobham, Chief Executive of Tax Justice Network, and both of us felt that our exchange would be worth sharing, as other organizations evaluate the B Team principles for themselves.
New Legislation Would Close Significant Offshore Loopholes in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) was a historic opportunity to reform the international tax code and finally put an end to the rampant shell games played by U.S. companies to avoid taxes. Unfortunately, the TCJA will likely increase offshore tax avoidance and increase the incentives for companies to move jobs and operations offshore. As a new ITEP report explains, TCJA creates many new breaks and loopholes for offshore corporate profits, and while several different bills have been introduced to close them, no one bill addresses all of them.
New Bill Would Plug an Offshore Loophole in Tax Overhaul
New Bill Would Plug an Offshore Loophole in Tax Overhaul
WASHINGTON, D.C. — House lawmakers introduced legislation Wednesday that would make it harder for multinational corporations to game the offshore provisions in the newly adopted tax overhaul.
Facebook Facing Shareholder Scrutiny for its Offshore Tax Avoidance
In recent months, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has been hauled before lawmakers in the United States and the European Union to respond to criticism of the company’s privacy policies and sharing of user data. Now the company’s dodgy tax practices are facing increased scrutiny from an even more important source: some of its own shareholders. In advance of its annual shareholders meeting on May 31, Facebook was confronted with a shareholder resolution (Proposal 8 on pg. 59) asking it to endorse a set of principles to guide its tax policy and to ensure that such principles consider the impact of its tax strategies on local economies and public services. The resolution is a signal from a group of concerned shareholders that Facebook’s tax avoidance hurts its reputation, the communities in which it operates, and creates financial risks to the company’s shareholders.
More than 50 Organizations Urge Congress to End the Tax Preference for Shifting Jobs and Profits Offshore
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, more than 50 national organizations sent a letter urging members of Congress to co-sponsor the No Tax Breaks for Outsourcing Act, which would overhaul the new international tax system put in place by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act to ensure that multinational corporations are no longer allowed to pay a lower tax rate on their offshore profits than they pay on their domestic profits.