Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Your Tax Dollars at Work

"Free Lunch" (Amazon.com)

"Free Lunch" (Amazon.com)

Did you know that many big box retailers, like Wal-Mart and Target, have deals with local communities to keep the sales tax you’re charged when you shop at their stores? Or that large public utilities collect taxes but scarcely pay them? For example, a utility in Portland, Oregon collected $900 million in taxes over ten years but paid less than $1 million. It’s all legal, but journalist David Cay Johnston says it’s time to change that. Part of his advice: invade the Cayman Islands to close down tax havens there!

We welcome comments from all of our listeners. Post below. Please stay on topic and be civil. Comments may be moderated by us, but you are solely responsible for the content of your comments.

  • James

    This is great stuff. I’ve heard David before and I’m always educated after listening to him.

  • jim

    Outrageous! This MUST get to the attention of the new Democratic Congress. I can see why it did not get any hearing during the Bush era!

  • Jon

    Can someone post the name of the book David wrote? I’m not at liberty to download the program right now. Thanks very much and great show!

  • Gary Paddock

    Thank you for such an informative and interesting program!!! How come we the citizens, the common folk, that is, of these United States of Unemployment are not marching in the streets, screaming for our fair share of the pie, our own tax break/loophole, our own personal “bailout?” Write to your senator, your representative, the president (I finally feel we have a president who can and will listen, rather than someone who is simply “The Decider”) to put an end to this madness!!! We must speak up!!

  • Jim C.

    David’s comments regarding offshore tax havens reminds me of a Time Magazine article on the passage of the Patriot Act. The banking industry lobbied hard to remove from the act, that US Bank’s transactons with offshore accounts had to be transparent. This was to help track terrorist money. God forbid we get a look at who is cheating the US taxpayer out of billions. It is obvious why Congress caved in and removed this article from the act.

  • Rhett Fuller

    Fantastic report! Another example example of why I like this show.

    I’m curious though about the number in potential tax revenue lost per day given all the loopholes available. I believe Mr. Johnston said $1 billion/day! I’m shocked that at least one member of Congress would not be clamoring very loudly to recoup this large an amount. What benefit could possibly apply to all members of congress that would cause the entire body to look the other way? I’m not disagreeing with anything Mr Johnston said. I’m just wondering what Congress is thinking or not about the issue.

  • Kay Hartley

    I’m a regular listener to ‘Here & Now’ and appreciate the host’s presentation of timely stories. Today’s story on tax evasion by the rich, utilities and big box stores makes clear why our country is in trouble; financial equity has been overridden in Congress because lobbyists represent the richest special interests. No one lobbies for the regular American people…. police, firefighters, teachers plus the guys at the supermarket counter or the bank tellers. This must change now.

  • Lance

    Will Mike Moore make a documentary about this please!? Anyone got his number?? I’m commenting to Netflix to make one about it now. This enrages me right off the scale!

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