Everyone Should Pay Their Fair Share in Corporate Taxes

By [ Michael Hanson ]
Washington, DC
09/09/2021

The Retail Industry Leaders Association sent a letter to congressional leaders today pushing policymakers to ensure all profitable companies pay a minimum amount in corporate taxes before they consider raising the corporate tax rate.

“Retailers pay one of the highest effective tax rates of any industry and most do not benefit from certain credits, deductions, and tax expenditures that other industries enjoy,” said Michael Hanson, RILA senior executive vice president, public affairs. “Lawmakers should not place the burden of higher taxes onto retailers and their workers while many companies pay little to no taxes. Allowing some companies to pay nothing while retailers pay full freight is simply unacceptable and pushes the tax code away from our shared goal of tax fairness. As member of Congress continue to negotiate, retailers hope they take this into consideration and ensure that all profitable companies are required to pay a minimum amount of tax to fund the country’s policy priorities.”

In addition to addressing the policy inequities in the tax code, RILA outlined support for additional IRS funding to collect taxes that are legally owed but not collected.

“A basic tenant of the tax code and any effort to reform it should focus on collecting what is legally owed before we ask businesses to pay higher rates,” said Hanson.

RILA’s recently hired vice president of tax, Hana Greenberg will be leading efforts to ensure members of Congress and the Biden-Harris administration fully appreciate the retail industry’s priorities in the budget debate.

The full letter can be viewed here.

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RILA is the US trade association for leading retailers. We convene decision-makers, advocate for the industry, and promote operational excellence and innovation. Our aim is to elevate a dynamic industry by transforming the environment in which retailers operate.

RILA members include more than 200 retailers, product manufacturers, and service suppliers, which together account for more than $1.5 trillion in annual sales, millions of American jobs, and more than 100,000 stores, manufacturing facilities, and distribution centers domestically and abroad.