Tax bite a nibble
Stephen Murray (Letters, Dec. 23) uses selected statistics to argue why the rich should keep their tax cuts.
In 2008, the Government Accountability Office found that two-thirds of U.S. corporations paid no federal income taxes from 1998 through 2005.
A Forbes magazine article showed that General Electric had $10.3 billion in pretax income in 2009 but paid nothing to the IRS, while getting a $1.1 billion tax benefit.
The article also showed that Exxon-Mobil had a record $45.2 billion profit in 2009, paid no U.S. income taxes and still received a $300 million tax refund. Every penny in taxes it paid went to foreign governments, not the IRS.
Congress had to pass a minimum tax bill because so many wealthy sheltered their money and paid little in taxes.
I earned about $100,000 per year before retiring. Taxes took 45 percent of that. The tax cuts saved me about $75 per year, while multimillionaires saved about $100,000. Studies showed that the rich kept their money rather than creating jobs.
As part of the bottom 50 percent, I feel that I am paying my “proportional” share. Are the rich, many of whom inherited their wealth?
Robyn Benjamin
Spokane