Taxation

France: How to Demolish a 75% Income Tax

by Wolf Richter •  • Comments Off on France: How to Demolish a 75% Income Tax

Socialist François Hollande, frontrunner in the French presidential election, tried to score some points against President Sarkozy—criticized for his cozy relationship with the rich. “I don’t like the rich,” he said and followed up on TV with two new income-tax brackets for the rich: 45% and 75%. But now a hullaballoo broke out, not among his targets, the corporate chieftains, but in the world of … soccer. And it’s killing the new tax.

Final Spasm: Greco-Teutonic Tax Wrestling

by Wolf Richter •  • Comments Off on Final Spasm: Greco-Teutonic Tax Wrestling

In Germany, the top personal income tax rate is 45%. People in religious organizations pay an additional “church tax.” Other taxes are piled on top. And when the hapless taxpayer spends money, a 19% value added tax comes due. Hence, tax fraud is a national sport. Yet, 160 Ministry of Finance employees are supposed to fix the Greek tax collection system—which will endear the already reviled Germans even more to the Greeks.

The Corporate Tax-Dodge Code

by Wolf Richter •  • Comments Off on The Corporate Tax-Dodge Code

Between 2002 and 2011, Boeing reported to its investors that it earned $31.8 billion. But it reported something entirely different to the IRS and didn’t pay income taxes. Instead, it received tax benefits of $2.06 billion. Other companies were similarly agile.

Broke California: Give Us The Facebook Manna Now

by Wolf Richter •  • Comments Off on Broke California: Give Us The Facebook Manna Now

California is broke again. The “balanced” budget last summer turned into a pile of overoptimistic assumptions. Out-of-money date is March 8. $3.3 billion must be dug up, pronto. Last fall, California had to borrow $21 billion to make it to April. Now all eyes are on Facebook. Its IPO will singlehandedly solve all budget problems forever—just like Google’s IPO had done.

The Strenuously Hushed-Up Basic Flaw In The Tax Code

by Wolf Richter •  • Comments Off on The Strenuously Hushed-Up Basic Flaw In The Tax Code

“Corporate Tax Dodging In The Fifty States” found that the largest corporations paid little or no state income taxes in any state. A prior report found that some of the most profitable corporations paid no federal income taxes. Both reports point at a major problem dogging the US economy: the tax code—and its basic flaw that not even tax reformers dare to mention.