Careful analysis reveals a number of excellent arguments for the implementation of a Universal Basic Income (UBI). (Photo: Yuri Keegstra/Flickr/cc)
In 2023, It's Time to End Corporate Tax Giveaways
Our constituents have a right to a state that works for them, not unaccountable corporate donors.
As 2022 comes to a close, it's time to reflect on the year behind us, and set goals for the year ahead. As state lawmakers, there's no shortage of dreams and aspirations we have for the communities we are honored to serve. But there is one New Year's Resolution that all states and political parties can get behind that would benefit all our constituents: ending corporate tax giveaways.
Working people are struggling to pay their bills, small businesses are fighting to keep their doors open, inflation remains high and public agencies are struggling to meet the needs of our communities.
Corporate tax giveaways come in various forms, including corporate incentives, subsidies, tax breaks, and tax loopholes. They are often written by and for the corporations that make the biggest campaign contributions or employ the most expensive roster of lobbyists, and often approved behind closed doors, via secret deals the public doesn't know about. While proponents claim they create and maintain jobs, years of data show that corporate tax giveaways are an expensive, inefficient and ineffective use of taxpayer dollars to create and maintain jobs.
In fact, research from the American Economic Liberties Project found that incentives disproportionately benefit big corporations, giving them an advantage over small, local businesses that don't receive the same level of state support. A 2015 study of incentives in 14 states found that 90 percent of the money went to large corporations. These unaccountable corporations continue to reap the profits from our tax dollars, while robbing the state of money needed for investments in services that everyday people need, like attainable housing, mass transportation, healthcare and early childhood education.
Unfortunately, state lawmakers across the country face a prisoners' dilemma. We feel forced to participate in corporate giveaways because nearly every state does. States are pitted against each other by multinational corporations seeking the biggest tax giveaways. As Good Jobs First reports, Kansas' $800M megadeal with Panasonic and Georgia's $1.5 subsidy package are just two examples, but these deals are everywhere. Negotiations are also often kept secret, keeping the public in the dark until the contract is signed. Without tax transparency, we don't even have the data to make informed decisions for our constituents.
These are policy choices, and state legislatures have the power to make a new choice in 2023. That's why we are proud to work with partner organizations like State Innovation Exchange (SiX), putting forward people-centered policy solutions. Policies that stop secret deals with corporate donors, repeal tax incentives that don't deliver on promises for workers, and ensure corporations play by the same rules we do, and actually pay the taxes they owe.
Working people are struggling to pay their bills, small businesses are fighting to keep their doors open, inflation remains high and public agencies are struggling to meet the needs of our communities. Our constituents have a right to a state that works for them, not unaccountable corporate donors. One of the ways we can do that is by eliminating wasteful corporate tax breaks that do nothing but pad the profits of politically influential corporations and instead use our tax dollars to invest in our communities. We're committed to this New Year's Resolution. We invite state lawmakers across the country to join us in this goal.
FINAL DAY! This is urgent.
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission from the outset was simple. To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It’s never been this bad out there. And it’s never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed and doing some of its best and most important work, the threats we face are intensifying. Right now, with just hours left in our Spring Campaign, we're still falling short of our make-or-break goal. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Can you make a gift right now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? There is no backup plan or rainy day fund. There is only you. —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
As 2022 comes to a close, it's time to reflect on the year behind us, and set goals for the year ahead. As state lawmakers, there's no shortage of dreams and aspirations we have for the communities we are honored to serve. But there is one New Year's Resolution that all states and political parties can get behind that would benefit all our constituents: ending corporate tax giveaways.
Working people are struggling to pay their bills, small businesses are fighting to keep their doors open, inflation remains high and public agencies are struggling to meet the needs of our communities.
Corporate tax giveaways come in various forms, including corporate incentives, subsidies, tax breaks, and tax loopholes. They are often written by and for the corporations that make the biggest campaign contributions or employ the most expensive roster of lobbyists, and often approved behind closed doors, via secret deals the public doesn't know about. While proponents claim they create and maintain jobs, years of data show that corporate tax giveaways are an expensive, inefficient and ineffective use of taxpayer dollars to create and maintain jobs.
In fact, research from the American Economic Liberties Project found that incentives disproportionately benefit big corporations, giving them an advantage over small, local businesses that don't receive the same level of state support. A 2015 study of incentives in 14 states found that 90 percent of the money went to large corporations. These unaccountable corporations continue to reap the profits from our tax dollars, while robbing the state of money needed for investments in services that everyday people need, like attainable housing, mass transportation, healthcare and early childhood education.
Unfortunately, state lawmakers across the country face a prisoners' dilemma. We feel forced to participate in corporate giveaways because nearly every state does. States are pitted against each other by multinational corporations seeking the biggest tax giveaways. As Good Jobs First reports, Kansas' $800M megadeal with Panasonic and Georgia's $1.5 subsidy package are just two examples, but these deals are everywhere. Negotiations are also often kept secret, keeping the public in the dark until the contract is signed. Without tax transparency, we don't even have the data to make informed decisions for our constituents.
These are policy choices, and state legislatures have the power to make a new choice in 2023. That's why we are proud to work with partner organizations like State Innovation Exchange (SiX), putting forward people-centered policy solutions. Policies that stop secret deals with corporate donors, repeal tax incentives that don't deliver on promises for workers, and ensure corporations play by the same rules we do, and actually pay the taxes they owe.
Working people are struggling to pay their bills, small businesses are fighting to keep their doors open, inflation remains high and public agencies are struggling to meet the needs of our communities. Our constituents have a right to a state that works for them, not unaccountable corporate donors. One of the ways we can do that is by eliminating wasteful corporate tax breaks that do nothing but pad the profits of politically influential corporations and instead use our tax dollars to invest in our communities. We're committed to this New Year's Resolution. We invite state lawmakers across the country to join us in this goal.
As 2022 comes to a close, it's time to reflect on the year behind us, and set goals for the year ahead. As state lawmakers, there's no shortage of dreams and aspirations we have for the communities we are honored to serve. But there is one New Year's Resolution that all states and political parties can get behind that would benefit all our constituents: ending corporate tax giveaways.
Working people are struggling to pay their bills, small businesses are fighting to keep their doors open, inflation remains high and public agencies are struggling to meet the needs of our communities.
Corporate tax giveaways come in various forms, including corporate incentives, subsidies, tax breaks, and tax loopholes. They are often written by and for the corporations that make the biggest campaign contributions or employ the most expensive roster of lobbyists, and often approved behind closed doors, via secret deals the public doesn't know about. While proponents claim they create and maintain jobs, years of data show that corporate tax giveaways are an expensive, inefficient and ineffective use of taxpayer dollars to create and maintain jobs.
In fact, research from the American Economic Liberties Project found that incentives disproportionately benefit big corporations, giving them an advantage over small, local businesses that don't receive the same level of state support. A 2015 study of incentives in 14 states found that 90 percent of the money went to large corporations. These unaccountable corporations continue to reap the profits from our tax dollars, while robbing the state of money needed for investments in services that everyday people need, like attainable housing, mass transportation, healthcare and early childhood education.
Unfortunately, state lawmakers across the country face a prisoners' dilemma. We feel forced to participate in corporate giveaways because nearly every state does. States are pitted against each other by multinational corporations seeking the biggest tax giveaways. As Good Jobs First reports, Kansas' $800M megadeal with Panasonic and Georgia's $1.5 subsidy package are just two examples, but these deals are everywhere. Negotiations are also often kept secret, keeping the public in the dark until the contract is signed. Without tax transparency, we don't even have the data to make informed decisions for our constituents.
These are policy choices, and state legislatures have the power to make a new choice in 2023. That's why we are proud to work with partner organizations like State Innovation Exchange (SiX), putting forward people-centered policy solutions. Policies that stop secret deals with corporate donors, repeal tax incentives that don't deliver on promises for workers, and ensure corporations play by the same rules we do, and actually pay the taxes they owe.
Working people are struggling to pay their bills, small businesses are fighting to keep their doors open, inflation remains high and public agencies are struggling to meet the needs of our communities. Our constituents have a right to a state that works for them, not unaccountable corporate donors. One of the ways we can do that is by eliminating wasteful corporate tax breaks that do nothing but pad the profits of politically influential corporations and instead use our tax dollars to invest in our communities. We're committed to this New Year's Resolution. We invite state lawmakers across the country to join us in this goal.