Income taxes are on the rise for most Americans, but according to the Huffington Post on Feb. 15, social media mega-giant Facebook paid no net corporate income taxes in the U.S. last year.
There’s a new report generated by Citizens for Tax Justice that claims Facebook will rake in $429 million in net tax refunds for the year, citing Facebook’s annual report. The company earned $1.1 billion in profits.
So how did Facebook manage that? By taking advantage of the deductibility of executive stock options linked to its initial public offering last year, according to the report. With this one loophole, Facebook saves $3.2 billion in taxes. The Guardian claims that Facebook paid a foreign tax rate of just 0.3 percent in 2011.
It’s not only Facebook taking advantage of these tax breaks. Many big companies have been accused of avoiding taxes. According to a 2011 report from Citizens for Tax Justice, 30 of the most profitable U.S. companies didn’t pay taxes, companies like General Electric and Boeing.
At a time when “average” Americans are struggling to cover their tax bills and live on less, something needs to be done to level the playing field. President Obama advocated for “getting rid of tax loopholes and deductions for the well-off and well-connected” in his recent State of the Union address. It hasn’t happened yet, but hopefully something can be done in the foreseeable future.
Be sure to check out Carla's other columns:
Charity & Volunteerism Examiner
Atlantic City Baby Boomer Examiner
Atlantic City Pop Media Examiner
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