AFSCME to Congress: Make GE and Other Big Corporations Pay Their Fair Share in Taxes
by Jon Melegrito | April 13, 2012
Click here to see our infographic illustrating the public services that could be funded if GE paid its fair share, and share it with your friends and family to help spread the word.
As millions of Americans prepare to file their income tax returns and pay their fair share of taxes, General Electric (GE) and other large corporations pay nothing despite reaping billions in profits.
According to Citizens for Tax Justice, 30 of the biggest American corporations did not pay a single cent in taxes in 2010.
It’s an outrage. And it got us wondering. If GE paid its fair share in taxes like the rest of us will this month, what could our communities do with the billions in lost revenue?
AFSCME’s research shows that if GE paid its fair share – the 35 percent statutory tax rate – it would face an average $2.67 billion federal tax liability each year during the last 10 years. That amount of revenue could pay for the wages of 56,000 fire fighters, 95,000 school bus drivers, 55,000 police and sheriff’s patrol officers, 39,000 registered nurses, nearly 53,000 librarians or more than 106,000 teachers assistants.
The public benefit? More public safety officers, for instance, would mean more secure communities. More library workers would mean improved services at our nation’s 16,000 libraries.
Tell Congress to make GE and other large corporations pay their fair share to make our communities stronger. Click here to send a letter to Congress today: www.afscme.org/taxday.
