Koch Industries takes aim
at House Republican tax reform plan
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[December 08, 2016]
By David Morgan
WASHINGTON
(Reuters) - Koch Industries, the private conglomerate owned by
billionaire conservatives Charles and David Koch, warned on Wednesday
that a Republican tax reform proposal meant to encourage U.S. exports
could have devastating effects on the economy and consumers.
The proposal, known as border adjustability, is part of a larger tax
reform plan backed by Republicans in the House of Representatives,
including Speaker Paul Ryan. It has attracted the attention of advisers
to President-elect Donald Trump as a potential tool for creating
manufacturing jobs for blue-collar Americans.
But the provision, which would tax imports while exempting U.S. exports
from corporate income tax, has raised concerns in the retailing and
energy sectors about its potential effects on prices for imported
consumer items and foreign goods used in domestic production.
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Corporate lobbyists say that Trump's threatened 35 percent import tax
against U.S. companies that move jobs overseas could reflect an interest
by the president-elect in a border-adjusted approach to tax reform.
The Trump team and Republicans in Congress are currently trying to
hammer out an agreement on tax reform for 2017.
"The proposed border tax adjustment will distort the market, increase
consumer prices and create an uneven playing field for companies and
consumers," Philip Ellender, who oversees government and public affairs
for the Wichita, Kansas-based multinational, said in a statement.
"The long-term consequences to the economy and the American consumer
could be devastating," added Ellender, who said Koch otherwise supports
tax reform.
Koch is the second largest private U.S. company, with operations that
range from refining and chemicals to ranching and forest products. Its
owners are known to spend heavily on conservative initiatives and to
oppose government intervention in business.
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David and Charles Koch in a combination image. REUTERS/Handout
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Representative Kevin Brady, Republican chairman of the House tax committee that
produced the reform plan, welcomed the Koch statement as feedback but described
border adjustability as "a key provision" that would level the playing field for
"Made in America" products.
Brady has said the plan would unleash economic and job growth by cutting the
corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 20 percent, simplifying the tax code and
encouraging investment.
Border adjustability would help pay for tax cuts by generating $1.2 trillion in
revenues over a decade, according to the non-partisan Tax Policy Center.
The provision would also discourage U.S. companies from moving operations abroad
as a result of another provision, which would eliminate U.S. taxes on the
foreign profits of U.S. multinationals.
(Reporting by David Morgan; Editing by Andrew Hay)
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