Wealthy pro athletes, musicians exploit tax loopholes to drive up rates for the rest of us
The tax code is so peppered with special giveaways that companies such as Facebook end up getting refunds, and high-profile athletes and artists use their tax-free foundations to give friends jobs while avoiding taxes — all leading to higher income tax rates for the rest of us, Sen. Tom Coburn charges in a new report being released Tuesday.
Baseball owners are able to claim their players “depreciate” over time, the same way farms are able to claim their tractors depreciate, thus entitling the already wealthy sports team owners to tax breaks that can offset much of the cost of operating a team. Meanwhile, sports leagues such as the NFL, a billion-dollar enterprise, are formed as tax-exempt organizations.
Mr. Coburn, Oklahoma Republican, is unveiling the report even as his colleagues are pushing to quickly pass a package of breaks for everything from wind turbines to subway ridership to tuna canneries.
“If you support making the tax code fairer and flatter, voting to revive expired tax giveaways for special interests has the exact opposite consequence,” Mr. Coburn said in a statement Monday, just ahead of the release of his report, entitled “Tax Decoder.”
