Corporate Tax Cheats Should Pay
When you own a political party like big business in Wisconsin does, you expect there to be mutual admiration for each other. However, when you read the Republican spin in today’s Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, you have to wonder if there even is any separation between the two.
Some Wisconsin companies are tax cheats. The vast majority are not. But standing up for the cheats is unfair to every business owner that pays their fair share.
Here’s the major scam. Company X doesn’t want to pay state taxes. The best way to avoid them is to set up a dummy corporation with a P.O. Box in Nevada, where there are no corporate taxes. Businesses have a physical presence here, make their product or conduct their service here, then send their “profits” to the shill company in Nevada. The result is tax avoidance in Wisconsin.
That’s not real, not fair and not the way most Wisconsin corporations operate. So the Department of Revenue (DOR) goes after them. I’m glad.
But GOP legislators will divert attention away from the tax dodgers by using a couple of examples of minor issues, like a parking lot tax during Packer games or a tax on small hunting clubs, to illustrate the problem of DOR being too aggressive. They are small, non issues that are somehow supposed to justify the wholesale thievery of larger corporations who hide their profits and don’t pay taxes. I’m sorry but that doesn’t fly.
I’m glad that the Department of Revenue is aggressively going after corporate tax cheats. And so should every legitimate business in Wisconsin. If there are areas where the Department needs to be more clear, we can do that too. But helping tax cheats cheat is not the answer.
With a level playing field, we can have profitable companies in Wisconsin. We have a strong talented workforce in our state. Our resources and proximity to major transportation lines are strong. Legitimate companies can do well in our state. Let’s not let the few who abuse the law affect the rest.
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