As Economy Lags, New Study Reveals 25 Top Firms Pay More to CEOs than in Taxes

[Jefferson23]

From Democracy Now, September 1, 2011


A new study reveals that 25 of the nation’s largest corporations paid more money to their CEOs last year than they did to the federal government in income taxes. Often using overseas tax havens, many of the corporations managed to make billions in profits but paid little to nothing in federal taxes. In many cases the companies received large tax rebates. The list includes some of the country’s best-known companies, such as Ford, Coca-Cola, Verizon, General Electric and eBay. The same study found that the ratio of CEO pay to that of the average worker in the United States jumped to 325-to-1 last year. We speak to the study’s co-author, Chuck Collins, a senior scholar at the Institute for Policy Studies and director of its Program on Inequality and the Common Good. "What these companies do is they use a variety of tax loopholes, corporate loopholes, to game down their taxes. So, these are what I would call the sort of champion in the tax gymnastics department," says Collins.


Guest:

Chuck Collins, senior scholar at the Institute for Policy Studies (IPS) and directs IPS’s Program on Inequality and the Common Good. He is co-author of the new study, "Executive Excess 2011: The Massive CEO Rewards for Tax Dodging." He is co-founder of United for a Fair Economy.

SNIP* We thank you so much for joining us. The name of your report is "Executive Excess 2011: The Massive CEO Rewards for Tax Dodging." Chuck, welcome to Democracy Now! So, go through it with us. How exactly does this work?

CHUCK COLLINS: Well, good morning, Juan and Amy.

And essentially what these companies do is they use a variety of tax loopholes, corporate loopholes, to game down their taxes. So, these are what I would call the sort of champion in the tax gymnastics department. They are using the offshore system, using offshore tax havens to move their profits offshore and lower their tax bill to the United States.

in full: http://www.democracynow.org/2011/9/1/as_economy_lags_new_study_reveals

**Read the full report, Executive Excess 2011: The Massive CEO Rewards for Tax Dodging.
http://www.ips-dc.org/reports/executive_excess_2011_the_massive_ceo_rewards_for_tax_dodging

[MichiganVote]

1. K&R

[PonyJon]

2. Vote a STRAIGHT DEMOCRATIC TICKET, you will be happy. nt

[classysassy]

3. The greed continues

America(American citizens wake up and take back your country),the rich criminals are on a spree of looting and pillage unlike any thing seen in the world before,they are attempting to take us back to the dark ages when the masters ruled and the surfs served the masters.Stop listening and watching their paid liars aka Limbaugh and Fox news,open your eyes before it's too late.