Both Cory Booker and Andrew Yang brought up the issue of Amazon paying zero dollars in federal taxes last year. Amazon is officially based in Ireland, which offers the tech giant very low tax rates.
The issue of Amazon possibly skirting taxes through the technicality of being officially based in Ireland has evolved into something of a campaign issue for the Democrats of late. These calls for more transparency from Amazon come amidst Amazon’s earning $4 billion in profits last year.
President Donald Trump has also called on Amazon to release its taxes, though with Trump the issue with much more muddled. Jeff Bezos recently bought the Washington Post for $300 million, and President Trump views the coverage that the Washington Post provides towards his presidency to be unfair and politically biased. For other candidates in the 2020 presidential race, like Elizabeth Warren and Joe Bide, the issue is less complicated and simply related to paying one’s fair share of taxes. Bernie Sanders, another 2020 hopeful, was the most forthright about Amazon when he said, “I’m going to tax them.”
Amazon attempted to halt the march among both Democrats and Republicans eager to make Amazon into a boogeyman ahead of the 2020 campaign. Jeff Bezos and Amazon released a press statement earlier this year claiming that the company has paid nearly $3 billion in taxes collectively over the last three years. Though a pittance compared to what Amazon should have paid, some critics would claim, Amazon’s claim is technically true. The trouble, however, is that Americans don’t really have a full grasp on what Amazon owes the federal government or what the company has earned over the years.
The shocking thing is that Amazon’s tax returns are private and, legally speaking, a trade secret. You read that correctly. The tax breaks that Amazon might be receiving are opaque and potentially unknowable. For all Americans know, Amazon could have structured its finances in such a way as to shortchange the American taxpayer billions of dollars every year. Until more transparency is offered by Amazon, the speculation and calls for Amazon to be more forthright with its finances will only increase. What is known about Amazon’s tax returns comes from Amazon’s own SEC filings in the form of current provisions for taxes.
Politicians have correctly arrived at the same place – Amazon’s tax filings are of profound public interest to America’s interests.
Dil Bole Oberoi
