New minimum tax could hit Berkshire Hathaway and Amazon hardest, study shows

Berkshire Hathaway Chairman Warren Buffett seen on the annual Berkshire shareholder procuring day in Omaha, Nebraska, U.S., Could 3, 2019.
Scott Morgan | Reuters

Researchers utilized the Inflation Discount Act’s new 15% company minimal tax onto 2021 firm earnings and located that the burden would solely be felt by about 78 corporations, with Berkshire Hathaway and Amazon paying up probably the most.

The study from the University of North Carolina Tax Center used previous securities filings to map the tax, which fits into impact in January, onto corporations’ 2021 earnings.

The researchers discovered that the 15% minimal would have taken a complete of $31.8 billion from 78 companies in 2021. Berkshire led the estimated payout with $8.33 billion, and Amazon follows behind with $2.77 billion owed based mostly on its 2021 earnings.

The examine notes the restrictions of trying solely at public firm information inside a single yr. The researchers acknowledged that these estimates could also be topic to vary, particularly as firm operations change below the tax in 2023.

President Joe Biden signed the minimum book tax into law, along with the rest of the Inflation Reduction Act, in August. The tax is particularly meant to focus on corporations incomes greater than $1 billion per yr.

The Joint Committee on Taxation had previously estimated that it could have an effect on round 150 companies, with the prices falling particularly on the manufacturing business. The bipartisan JCT additionally predicted $34 billion in income within the first yr of the tax, barely greater than the theoretical 2021 income estimated at UNC.

In keeping with the examine, the next-highest taxes can be paid by Ford, AT&T, eBay and Moderna, all of which might owe greater than $1.2 billion in funds based mostly on their 2021 financials.

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