Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos
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Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos on Tuesday voiced support for raising the corporate tax rate, but stopped saying he supports President Joe Biden’s plan for growth.
“We support the Biden administration’s focus on bold investment in US infrastructure,” Bezos said in a statement. “We recognize that this investment will require concessions from all parties – both in terms of the specifics of what is included and how it is paid (we support an increase in the corporate tax rate).”
Last week, Biden unveiled a package of more than $ 2 trillion that features radical upgrades to the nation’s bridges, roads, public transportation and airports, among other transportation infrastructure. It also included investments in caring for the elderly and disabled, building and modernizing affordable housing, and advancing American production and training efforts, among other goals.
To finance the package, Biden proposed raising the corporate tax rate to 28% from 21%. The corporate tax rate has been reduced under President Donald Trump to 21% from 35% as part of a 2017 tax law.
Bezos’ support for a tax increase is notable, given that Amazon has previously faced control over its tax record, including from Biden. In May last year, Biden, then a presidential candidate, told CNBC that Amazon “should start paying its taxes.”
Biden re-selected Amazon last week during an address in Pittsburgh, slamming the company for using “various loopholes so that he would not pay any lone money in federal income tax.”
In response, Amazon spokesman Jay Carney he said in a tweet: “If the tax credit for research and development is a ‘gap’, it is certainly a strong intention of Congress. The R&D tax credit has existed since 1981, has been extended 15 times with bi-partisan support and became permanent in 2015 through a law signed by President Obama. “
After paying $ 0 in federal income tax for two years, Amazon paid $ 162 million in federal income taxes in 2019. The company, which benefits from a variety of tax credits and deductions, reported total revenue last year. of $ 386 billion.
– CNBC’s Jacob Pramuk contributed to this report.