Obama targets multinational corporations

The President spoke today of his administration's plans to increase the amount of taxes paid by U.S.-based multinational corporations.

He began his remarks with this statement: "Let's begin with a simple premise: Nobody likes paying taxes, particularly in times of economic stress. But most Americans meet their responsibilities because they understand that it's an obligation of citizenship, necessary to pay the costs of our common defense and our mutual well-being."

Agreed!

Here are a few key statements he made:

• "For years, we've talked about shutting down overseas tax havens."
• "I'm asking Congress to pass some commonsense measures."
• "These and other reforms will save American taxpayers $210 billion over the next 10 years."
• "We're beginning to restore fairness and balance to our tax code."

So what is the plan?

The White House released a Fact Sheet on its plan, which provides detail on the following goals:

(1) Replacing Tax Advantages for Creating Jobs Overseas With Incentives to Create Them at Home

• Reforming Deferral Rules to Curb A Tax Advantage for Investing and Reinvesting Overseas
• Closing Foreign Tax Credit Loopholes
• Using Savings To Make Permanent The Tax Credit for Investing in Research and Experimentation at Home
  

(2) Getting Tough on Overseas Tax Havens

• Eliminating Loopholes for "Disappearing" Offshore Subsidiaries
• Cracking Down on the Abuse of Tax Havens by Individuals
• Devoting New Resources for IRS Enforcement to Help Close the International Tax Gap
  

What's next?

We'll see how this all plays out with Congress. Here are a few links for more on the story...

The Tax Lawyer's Blog: Obama Vows to Close Foreign Tax Loopholes
TaxGirl: Obama Set to Shake Up Corporate Tax "Loopholes" Today
CNN Money: Obama plans corporate tax crackdown
Bloomberg: Obama Seeks End of Corporate Tax Break