Corporate tax-dodgers get help from NC Senate

Those poor little multi-state corporations need protection from the mean old tax collectors:

The state Senate and the business lobby want to take away a big stick that the state's tax collector says it needs to punish big businesses that dodge their taxes.

The issue is up for debate in budget negotiations under way between the state House and Senate. The Senate's version includes a provision that would prevent the N.C. Department of Revenue from assessing a penalty on businesses it thinks are hiding income.

Methinks Martin Nesbitt should have added "taking care of business" to his recent list of Senate Democratic accomplishments. I mean, really. You ask us for our help in supporting you while at the same time you're trying to shield corporations from fines for bad behavior that exacerbates our budget problems? I believe you mentioned something about teachers in that e-mail, right? Don't you think this:

Without the penalties, the revenue department thinks it would miss $100 million in taxes it would otherwise collect. The state faces an $800 million revenue shortfall.

is even slightly relevant in that discussion?

And as far as this lobbyist is concerned:

The state has not been distinguishing between legitimate business tax planning and deliberate dodges, said Chuck Neely, a Raleigh-based lobbyist for the Washington-based Council on State Taxation. He represents multi-state corporations in such disputes with the N.C. Department of Revenue.

"The career professionals down there are good people, but I think the money pressures and maybe the anger ... at what they perceive to be abuses have driven this," Neely said.

Did you take the time to look at who's on the Board of this "Council"? GE, Pfizer, Coca-Cola, Chevron, Time-Warner Cable, Alcoa, Bancorp, Amazon, Microsoft, etc.

We got a big problem with corporate tax-dodgers in our state. Hell, just the ones that live in a dusty drawer in Deleware keep enough tax money in their pockets to pay for hundreds of teachers, but you guys want to turn this around and make the Department of Revenue out to be the abusers? Good Lord.

And all I could think of to say when I read this:

State Rep. Pryor Gibson, a Wadesboro Democrat, said he expects some form of the provision to make it to the budget. He said all taxpayers should only pay what they owe.

"We encourage every taxpayer to avoid taxes if they can," Gibson said. "No taxpayer should evade taxes."

was, "What?!" Actually I said, "What the fuck?!", but that's not something you should just casually type into a blog, so I'll just leave it at, "What?!"

Avoid taxes if you can? What kind of an "every man for himself" message is that for a legislator to send?

You know what's really frustrating? I want to roll up my sleeves and help the Democratic Party protect its majority in the General Assembly, but I can't ignore stupid crap like this. I'm just not wired that way. Sometimes I envy those blinder-wearing uber pragmatists that can stay focused on winning campaigns without being distracted by something as inconsequential as actual policy enactments. Sometimes.