How to Raise Corporate Taxes Without a Blowback
If Biden wants to reclaim some of the revenue lost to Trump's tax cuts, he should focus on companies' cash flow, not profit.
Raising corporate taxes could help pay for Biden's new infrastructure plan.
Photographer: Scott Eells/Bloomberg
With so many big-ticket spending items on the table from President Joe Biden's administration, legislators are understandably looking for ways to pay for it all. One proposal is to raise the corporate tax. Some fear that this would make the U.S. an uncompetitive place to do business, but there’s a way to adjust the tax so that it gives the advantage to U.S. workers.
Though we don't actually need tax increases to pay for a lot of the infrastructure ideas (because the investment will earn a positive return over time), the U.S. needs higher taxes in general to fund ongoing social programs like the child allowance, as well as to curb fears about long-term structural deficits. That’s why Biden is now expanding the amount of tax hikes included in his infrastructure proposal.