This group is trying to get giant US corporations who do not pay any, or who pay very little, income taxes to pay their fair share.
When I read that the "action" today had targeted Bank of America, and then when I read the tax (or shall I say "no tax") facts about BOA, I decided to act. I went to Staples to have them print a sign, but when they couldn't do so in time, I bought some foam core, pulled out the Sharpies and inked a few slogans to reflect the facts. Then I went out to the curb and found one of the discarded posts for the temporary snow ban "No Parking" signs and fashioned a picket. My signs said: "I pay my taxes. You pay your taxes. Why does Bank of America pay no taxes?" and "Bank of America is bankrupting America."
I stood at the curb outside of the BOA branch on Main Street for two hours and found plenty of support in horn honks, thumbs up and had a few nice discussions with passers-by. Some bank employees came out and asked what I thought I was doing.
"I think I'm trying to tell people that Bank of America paid no income tax last year," I responded.
They complained to the police, and a very nice officer arrived to tell me that what I was doing was legal, but that I shouldn't step into the street, block pedestrian traffic or bother bank customers.
Here's some of the information about Bank of America that US Uncut supplied:
• BofA is the largest bank and 5th largest corporation in America
• BofA holds over $2.2 Trillion in assets
• BofA in 2009 earned a pretax income of $4.4 Billion.
• BofA received $45 Billion in taxpayer bailout funds in 2008 and 2009
• BofA paid ZERO federal income tax in 2009
• BofA actually received a $1.9 Billion tax benefit from the government in 2009
• BofA took deductions of $2.1 Billion in 2009
• BofA funneled its income through 115 foreign tax-haven subsidiaries
And some general information about corporate tax avoidance in general:
• Two-thirds of all US corporations do not pay federal income tax
• 25% of the biggest US corporations do not pay federal income tax
• US corporations avoid between $37 Billion and $100 Billion a year in US taxes
• President Obama has called for ending corporate tax loopholes in his campaign, the 2010 State of the Union and the 2011 State of the Union
• The “Stop Tax Haven Abuse Act” was not acted upon by the previous Congress.
And here's the result:
• Congress had proposed a $5.7 billion cut to the Pell Grant program which will directly target lower income students who want a higher education
• Congress has proposed a $1 Billion cut to the Head Start program which will directly target lower income and poverty stricken children
• Congress has proposed a $700 million cut to Title I grants which will directly target children in lower income school districts
• College tuition has risen nearly 20 percent in just two years, making higher education unaffordable, saddling students with crippling debt.
Corporations have one the right, via the Supreme Court, to be considered "individuals" and thereby have been allowed to contribute to political campaigns in an unlimited fashion.
It's about time these "individuals" began to shoulder part of the load.
When Enron collapsed, Sharon Watkins, an Enron insider who proved to be one of the only honest people close to Jeff Skilling, said, "It could happen again." Of course, now we know that Enron-style accounting was already happening again, and has been practiced all along. The investment banking executives are the same people who run the U.S. Treasury. We have government of the obscenely rich, by the obscenely rich, and for the obscenely rich. And when the rich in the private sector have their ponzi schemes exposed, the puppets of the rich in government bail them out in the name of protecting the middle class. It is disgusting, and there is no capacity for shame among the ruling class. This shouldn't surprise anyone, by now. But maybe sometime the American people will wake up and quit believing the myth that they too can be obscenely rich if they keep voting for tax cuts for the rich.
ReplyDeleteOn February 14 my union, SEIU, launched a public info campaign against BOA, with a rousing noontime picket a the "Gold Building" in Hartford. We released a "white paper" with facts:
ReplyDelete• $7 million in recording fees that Bank of America avoided by not registering sales of securitized mortgages with city and county governments;
• $6.4 million in employee healthcare costs that Bank of America pawns off on state taxpayers; 500 employees in CT need to have children on Husky because the pay is so low.
• $1.5 billion that local governments will be forced to spend to maintain the 80,000 homes Bank of America is projected to foreclose on between 2009 and 2012, which could become public safety hazards and eyesores if not properly kept up;
• $174 million in fees that Bank of America has charged Connecticut residents on their bank accounts; and
• $4.7 million that Bank of America has cut in lending to Connecticut’s small businesses;
On Saturday March 12 Ed you will not picket alone any more! We are choosing 4 or 5 state BOA branches to mobilize in front of.
I vote for Middletown.
A little earlier in the day, Rosa DeLauro was at DeKoven House talking about the proposed federal budget and how it will affect our children (children was the focus of the meeting). She aptly stated that these cuts in services are unrecoverable -- when a child doesn't receive early education, they don't make up that lost ground. She also talked about how we can't just look at budget cuts, we must also look at closing loop holes (she specifically mentioned pharmaceutical and oil companies) that either the federal government actually pays these companies or they dodge taxes. We must put pressure on our legislatures to have ALL of us (individuals, corporations, government) share the burden and make sacrifices. We can't balance the budget on the back of those that are least able to carry the burden and we can't allow corporations to jump through loop holes to make exorbitant profits that benefit very few.
ReplyDeleteIf a Corporation is a person, as The Supreme Court(LLC) has ruled, why don't they pay taxes like a person?
ReplyDeleteThank you for this specific post and also for your continued work on The Middletown Eye Blog.
ReplyDeleteThis is a refreshing perspective that many media outlets do not adequately provide. Furthermore, this particular post highlights a well known problem in our society that seems to be shrugged off and forgotten, too easily, by many citizens and government officials alike.
Gee,Bob- is that the same SEIU that spent $60 million on the Obama campaign, almost bankrupted itself, then fired over 200 staff who later -ironically- filed an unfair labor practices lawsuit against their union? Yes, let's listen to what Bob has to say.
ReplyDeleteClosing my account this week.
ReplyDeleteWhile I'm sure that BofA has committed its fair share of wrongs, I think you ought to look elsewhere when it comes to how much or how little they pay in federal income taxes. Absent proof to the contrary, they are following the laws that Your Elected Representatives (e.g., Rosa D.) have passed, and the regulations written by the IRS to implement those laws.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure you do everything you legally can do to minimize your own taxes (do you take the home mortage interest deduction?) and don't think twice about it, certainly don't consider it to be a moral failing.
So, on the tax issue at least, go picket Washington.
Thank you Ed!
ReplyDeleteJennifer Peifer
SEIU spent approximately $25 to $30 million on the Obama campaign -- peanuts compared the $4 billion that corporate America spent in the 2010 election cycle, most of which was funneled through the US Chamber of Commerce. Thirty five percent of that money came from multi national corporations (foreign cash influencing US elections), so is it wrong that SEIU spent what they did to get in a candidate that that they thought would be good for the citizens? Or was it right for the US Chamber of Commerce to illegally collect money from foreign corporations to affect the 2010 elections to get in politicians who are now going after middle America (ie, Wisconsin)? A date to remember: May 2nd, 1993, the date Adolf Hitler announced that it would be illegal to have a labor union in Germany.
ReplyDeleteAs far as the layoffs go, SEIU ramped up its staff going into the 2008 election cycle. When you're hired to work an election, and the election is over, there's a pretty good chance you're going to get laid off at the end of it. Did the Republican National Committee have as many people on staff after the 2008 election? No, and neither did SEIU.
Tracy, you could make a more convincing case if you would compare apples to apples.
ReplyDeleteIf as you say the SEIU spent $25MM on Obama's campaign, that's $25MM spent on one candidate for election to one office.
If "corporate america" spent $4B during the 2010 election cycle, that's on average $8.5MM per candidate if you count only the House and Senate races.
Not chump change and arguably not "fair", but very different from what your post implies.
Want a new bank? Middletown's own MIddConn is a credit union (Court St) open to anyone who lives in MIddletown! I left Bank of America about 10 years ago and haven't paid any bank fees since.
ReplyDeleteIt's a beautiful thing.
Seasons Fed Credit Union is also wonderful. Headquarters here in Middletown. Built the first LEED_certified green building for a financial institution in CT. great service and a wonderful place to bank.
ReplyDeleteTracy- I believe Hitler was dead long before 1993.
ReplyDeleteTracy- I do not believe temporary office help routinely sues their employers when they are released.
Tracy- those "middle-America" teachers in Wisconsin average over $80,000 a year.They are being asked to contribute about 25% of what most people contribute to their pension and health plan. For them, one dollar is one dollar too much.I'm sure there are plenty of unemployed teachers willing to "suffer" like that. Fire them all.