In the UNited States, the House Ways and Means Committee kicked off the public tax reform debate last Thursday, with a hearing stacked with executives from multinational companies — including many offshore tax dodgers. warns Global Alliance for Tax Justice’s regional network member FACT Coalition (Financial Accountability and Corporate Transparency Coalition), a non-partisan alliance of more than 100 state, national, and international organizations working toward a fair tax system that addresses the challenges of a global economy. In a press statement titled “Experts Concerned that Tax Avoiders Propagate Skewed Perspective on Tax Policy”, the US civil society expressed the concerns raised by the one-sided event.
FACT Coalition’s deputy director Clark Gascoigne said “This event underscores why Congress is so out-of-touch with the American people. When the only voices you hear are those of offshore tax dodgers, you might have a skewed perspective on how to improve the tax code for honest taxpayers. Every witness on the panel advocated that the pizza shop in Iowa should pay a higher tax rate than General Electric or Google. Instead of leveling the playing field, the executives called on Congress to create an even greater incentive to move additional jobs and money offshore in the future. Offshore tax avoidance is a problem that costs U.S. taxpayers an estimated $135 billion annually. Instead of expanding the incentive to shift profits and jobs offshore, Congress should ensure that wholly domestic and small businesses can compete more fairly with multinationals.”
You can read more on FACT’s website and also read FACT’s “Briefing Memo: Tax Reform Important Steps to Fix the Gaming of the Corporate Tax System.”
Photo @WaysMeansCmte / Twitter
