NBA owner Mark Cuban has never been one to shy away from controversy. Or better yet, his willingness to be brutally honest has often created controversy. Either way, a tweet that Cuban put out on July 25 is sure to make some waves as far as big business is concerned.
In the tweet, the Dallas Mavericks owner says:
?If I own stock in your company and you move offshore for tax reasons I’m selling your stock. There are enough investment choices here.?
With plenty of corporate greed to go around, it’s refreshing to see a self-made billionaire stand up for common sense economic responsibility. Especially when it concerns keeping U.S. investments and returns in the U.S..
With Cuban’s high profile status, maybe, just maybe, his comments will give others the nudge they desperately need to follow suit.
With so much separation between the average American’s tax rate, to that of a billion-dollar corporation?s, this kind of pressure by the likes of Mark Cuban, just may persuade some of these companies to look closer at these types of offshore moves.
Bloomberg.com reports that:
?Corporate profits earned outside the U.S. aren’t subject to federal taxes until they are brought home by U.S.-based companies. General Electric leads all U.S. companies with $110 billion in accumulated profits held outside the country.?
This type of maneuver is known as tax inversion, and Mark Cuban is not the only one ready to put a stop to it. In an interview with CNBC’s Steve Liesman the day before Cuban’s tweet, President Obama had this to say:
?And this is basically taking advantage of tax provisions that are technically legal – but I think most people would say if you’re doing business here, if you’re basically still an American company, but you’re simply changing your mailing address in order to avoid paying taxes then you’re really not doing right by the country – and by the American people.?
With such blatant tax-evasion that would land most U.S. citizens in prison, it will be interesting to see what Congress does to close these tax loopholes. Or better yet, what they won’t do.
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