3 ms·

Companies don't pay taxes it's the shareholders and the employees who pay taxes. So if Google "avoids" taxes on its' income it will end up being paid (at probab

Companies don't pay taxes it's the shareholders and the employees who pay taxes. So if Google "avoids" taxes on its' income it will end up being paid (at probably a much higher rate) by the shareholders and employees of the company. That their intentions aren't pure enough for some is not a reason to not celebrate what they're doing for their employees.

mapgrep 13y ago
>Companies don't pay taxes it's the shareholders and the employees who pay taxes. This is false. What do you mean? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporate_tax_in_the_United_States http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporate_tax_in_the_United_Sta... http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-05-22/google-joins-apple-avoiding-taxes-with-stateless-income.html http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-05-22/google-joins-apple-... >if Google "avoids" taxes on its' income it will end up being paid (at probably a much higher rate) by the shareholders and employees Also not true. Long term capital gains tax is 15%. Dividends are taxed at the same rate, unless you make over $400k per year, at which point you pay 20%. Corporate taxes, in contrast, are 35% at the federal level. Taken with state taxes the effective rate is close to 40% (http://www.kpmg.com/global/en/services/tax/tax-tools-and-resources/pages/corporate-tax-rates-table.aspx http://www.kpmg.com/global/en/services/tax/tax-tools-and-res...). So it's a net loss when Google dodges taxes. (And I didn't even get into shares held abroad or in retirement accounts.) (Edits with slightly less confrontational language.)
- jswinghammer 13y ago
  Ultimately everyone pays. Since corporations aren't humans they aren't paying anything. Everyone else in the corporation has to take fewer profits and less compensation as a result of those taxes. They aren't free.
riggins 13y ago
Companies don't pay taxes it's the shareholders and the employees who pay taxes. You're dead wrong. The corporate tax is 35% at the federal level and anywhere from 1-12% at the state level. Reductions in corporate taxes increase the net income available to shareholders. One easy way for under-levered companies to increase profits for shareholders is to go borrow a bunch of debt (interest expense is deductible). As a sidenote, Minsky thought eliminating corporate taxes might increase economic stability because it would remove the incentive for corps to increase leverage in order to minimize taxes. You might be thinking of a REIT or a MLP where taxable income is passed through to the partners.
- vasilipupkin 13y ago
  I think what he/she means is that companies paying taxes means less money going to shareholders and employees, which means that those two groups are effectively the ones paying those taxes
deleted 13y ago
[deleted]

mapgrep 13y ago

>Companies don't pay taxes it's the shareholders and the employees who pay taxes. This is false. What do you mean? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporate_tax_in_the_United_States http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporate_tax_in_the_United_Sta... http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-05-22/google-joins-apple-avoiding-taxes-with-stateless-income.html http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-05-22/google-joins-apple-... >if Google "avoids" taxes on its' income it will end up being paid (at probably a much higher rate) by the shareholders and employees Also not true. Long term capital gains tax is 15%. Dividends are taxed at the same rate, unless you make over $400k per year, at which point you pay 20%. Corporate taxes, in contrast, are 35% at the federal level. Taken with state taxes the effective rate is close to 40% (http://www.kpmg.com/global/en/services/tax/tax-tools-and-resources/pages/corporate-tax-rates-table.aspx http://www.kpmg.com/global/en/services/tax/tax-tools-and-res...). So it's a net loss when Google dodges taxes. (And I didn't even get into shares held abroad or in retirement accounts.) (Edits with slightly less confrontational language.)

jswinghammer 13y ago
Ultimately everyone pays. Since corporations aren't humans they aren't paying anything. Everyone else in the corporation has to take fewer profits and less compensation as a result of those taxes. They aren't free.

riggins 13y ago

Companies don't pay taxes it's the shareholders and the employees who pay taxes. You're dead wrong. The corporate tax is 35% at the federal level and anywhere from 1-12% at the state level. Reductions in corporate taxes increase the net income available to shareholders. One easy way for under-levered companies to increase profits for shareholders is to go borrow a bunch of debt (interest expense is deductible). As a sidenote, Minsky thought eliminating corporate taxes might increase economic stability because it would remove the incentive for corps to increase leverage in order to minimize taxes. You might be thinking of a REIT or a MLP where taxable income is passed through to the partners.

vasilipupkin 13y ago
I think what he/she means is that companies paying taxes means less money going to shareholders and employees, which means that those two groups are effectively the ones paying those taxes

deleted 13y ago

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