Independent U.S. Sen. Angus King of Maine and two Democratic colleagues, U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and U.S. Rep. Don Beyer of Virginia, have introduced a plan to collect federal tax money from some of the wealthiest corporations in the country.
The proposal would levy a 7% tax on each dollar of "book income," or the profit that's reported to investors, rather than the taxable figures shown to the IRS. The tax would only kick in after the first $100 million in reported book income profits.
King has long been a critic of the country's complex tax code and loopholes that enable companies to dramatically — and legally — lower their tax bills through writeoffs and deductions.
Famously, in 2018 Amazon reported $11 billion in profits to shareholders, but paid no income tax to the IRS.
King says in a statement that corporations' failure to pay taxes has added to the nation’s rising debt.
