Every time I read about an American corporation deserting our country to dodge its taxes, I think about my Uncle Billy. From a family of 11 kids in Pennsylvania coal country, Billy was a bombardier in World War II, shot down twice, the second time winding up in a German POW camp for 14 months.
His last years were spent here in Denver, and whenever he'd hear about big, profitable corporations avoiding their fair share of taxes through offshore accounting tricks, he'd marvel at the greed: "How many steaks can you eat in a day? When is enough enough?"
Good thing Uncle Billy, who passed away last year, wasn't around to hear about the latest tax-dodging maneuver now sweeping Corporate America: inversions. Big American firms, founded in the United States and nourished here for decades, are renouncing their U.S. "citizenship" and claiming their headquarters are now in an offshore tax haven, shaving millions off their tax bills.
Just recently, Burger King -- born in Florida and an American institution for half a century -- announced it was going to buy a Canadian donut chain and shift its corporate address north of the border.
But in reality, like other inverting corporations, Burger King will still be run from here, and will still enjoy all the benefits of being an American company -- from highways to patent protection to an educated workforce -- that help make it profitable. But by changing its place of incorporation, it can duck out on its fair share of taxes that pay for those benefits, shifting those costs onto the rest of us.
Corporate giants undertaking an inversion with an offshore company have no sense of loyalty to country, customers, or community. I know something about loyalty to customers. A lawyer by trade, I got into the auto repair business because I felt a responsibility to help a client in a jam.
The long-time owner of Gary's Auto Service here in Denver had planned to sell his business to one of his mechanics. When that deal fell through three weeks before he had to vacate the building (he had sold the property separately), I stepped in.
With our original shop gone, we had to move to a new location. We chose the up-and-coming but still struggling Santa Fe arts district -- a far cry from the shop's former location in a wealthier part of town. I'm glad we made the move and feel an obligation to help this community thrive.
That's why I don't mind paying taxes. I think it's a civic duty. Taxes pay for what makes America a great place to live and run a business.
But when corporations and others fail to pay their fair share of taxes, it hurts us all. My wife cant drive down 13th Avenue without all the potholes ruining her suspension. In her role as a school nurse, she's part of a team that identifies and creates education plans for students with special needs. It's a crucial service, but has suffered because of budget cuts.
We can stop these "Benedict Arnold" corporations from abandoning our country, dodging their taxes and damaging our public services. There's legislation in Congress right now that would prevent U.S. corporations from claiming a foreign headquarters address in order to avoid their full tax bill.
I'm eager to hear the views on this important matter from candidates running for Congress this year -- especially the two U.S. Senate candidates, incumbent Mark Udall and Rep. Cory Gardner. These corporate inversions are part of an even larger tax-dodging problem we face: corporations that get tax breaks by shifting profits and jobs offshore. Voters deserve to know what our elected officials are going to do to make sure corporations pay their fair share of taxes and don't get subsidized for leaving America and taking our jobs with them.
Colorado's other U.S. senator, Michael Bennet, is in an especially good position to help end this unpatriotic corporate behavior. He sits on the tax-law-writing Finance Committee, which means his support for reform would carry extra weight.
If Senators Bennet, Udall and their colleagues in Congress act now to stop corporate inversions -- and to close the even bigger offshore tax loopholes that cost us at least $50 billion a year -- I know they'd make Uncle Billy very proud.
Shannon owns Gary's Auto Service in Denver.
