[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 62 (Wednesday, May 15, 2002)]
[House]
[Page H2477]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               CLOSING LOOPHOLE FOR CORPORATE TAX DODGING

  (Ms. HOOLEY of Oregon asked and was given permission to address the 
House for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. HOOLEY of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, what a year it has been. We now 
have proof that Enron was manipulating West Coast energy prices to 
simply gouge consumers of their hard-earned money while its auditor, 
Arthur Andersen, took the term ``cooking the books'' to a whole new 
level. We have also learned how Fortune 500 companies take out life 
insurance policies on their rank-and-file employees to enhance 
compensation for senior executives.
  Speaking of corporate tax avoidance, try and keep a straight face 
when you tell your constituents that it is perfectly legal for a 
company to rent a post office in Bermuda and avoid paying taxes. This 
is utterly ridiculous. One of the effects of corporations not paying 
their taxes is that we cannot give seniors and working families a 
prescription drug benefit, or that we cannot fund the President's 
education bill or hire more cops. Moreover, we are in the middle of a 
war, and we are effectively permitting U.S. companies to place a higher 
value on earnings than on patriotism.
  Mr. Speaker, it is time to close this loophole. It is time to crack 
down on tax evasion. I urge my colleagues to cosponsor H.R. 3884.




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