London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, Oct 19, 2025

Bezos called for higher taxes, even as Amazon lobbied to keep rates low, report says

Bezos called for higher taxes, even as Amazon lobbied to keep rates low, report says

Jeff Bezos, the richest man in the world, publicly endorsed President Biden's plan to dramatically raise taxes on wealthy Americans and corporations, even as Amazon lobbied behind the scenes to preserve a tax loophole that's allowed it to reduce its liability, according to a new report.
The e-commerce behemoth's founder and CEO in April announced that he supported Biden's proposal to raise the corporate tax rate to 28% from 21% in order to fund a sweeping infrastructure overhaul – a notable statement after the president singled out Bezos for how little Amazon pays in federal taxes.

"We recognize this investment will require concessions from all sides — both on the specifics of what’s included as well as how it gets paid for (we’re supportive of a rise in the corporate tax rate)," Bezos wrote in a statement posted on the company's website. "We look forward to Congress and the Administration coming together to find the right, balanced solution that maintains or enhances U.S. competitiveness."

But in private, Amazon has been making moves to keep its tax bill low, according to a new report published Thursday by Politico – highlighting the difficulties that Biden may face in ensuring the tax measure becomes law.

In June, Amazon hired the tax lobbyist Joshua Odintz, a former Democratic congressional aide and alumnus of the Obama administration, to lobby on the section of the tax code dealing with the research and development tax deduction, according to a disclosure filing cited by the outlet.

And the R&D Coalition — a coalition of companies that benefit from the deduction including Amazon, Intel, the National Association of Manufacturers and others — hired a slew of veteran tax lobbyists at PricewaterhouseCoopers earlier this year, Politico reported. Among the individual hired is a former top aide to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.

Under current policy, businesses can choose to fully expense the costs of research and development, meaning they can deduct R&D costs from their taxable income, according to the Tax Foundation. The R&D tax credit, first established in 1981, has broad bipartisan support among lawmakers.

It's unclear how much money Amazon has saved with the R&D tax credit, but in a regulatory filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission earlier this year, the company said the tax credits helped reduce its U.S. tax burden "were primarily related to the U.S. federal research and development credit."

Of course, Amazon benefits from other tax laws, including one that allows it to deduct the cost of the stock it gives employees as part of their pay packages.

Biden has not targeted the R&D tax credit as part of his roughly $4 trillion spending plan. But Politico reported that the credit could become less valuable next year if Congress doesn't act, because Republicans 2017 tax law included a provision that would prevent companies from immediately deducting the full amount of R&D expenses in 2022.

Companies would instead have to deduct a portion of it every year over the next five years.

The Tax Foundation estimated that repealing the changes would cost about $131 billion over a decade but would boost GDP by 0.1%.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Windows’ Own ‘Siri’ Has Arrived: You Can Now Talk to Your Computer
Thailand and Singapore Investigate Cambodian-Based Prince Group as U.S. and U.K. Sanctions Unfold
‘No Kings’ Protests Inflate Numbers — But History Shows Nations Collapse Without Strong Executive Power
Chinese Tech Giants Halt Stablecoin Launches After Beijing’s Regulatory Intervention
Manhattan Jury Holds BNP Paribas Liable for Enabling Sudanese Government Abuses
Trump Orders Immediate Release of Former Congressman George Santos After Commuting Prison Sentence
S&P Downgrades France’s Credit Rating, Citing Soaring Debt and Political Instability
Ofcom Rules BBC’s Gaza Documentary ‘Materially Misleading’ Over Narrator’s Hamas Ties
Diane Keaton’s Cause of Death Revealed as Pneumonia, Family Confirms
Former Lostprophets Frontman Ian Watkins Stabbed to Death in British Prison
"The Tsunami Is Coming, and It’s Massive": The World’s Richest Man Unveils a New AI Vision
Outsider, Heroine, Trailblazer: Diane Keaton Was Always a Little Strange — and Forever One of a Kind
Dramatic Development in the Death of 'Mango' Founder: Billionaire's Son Suspected of Murder
Two Years of Darkness: The Harrowing Testimonies of Israeli Hostages Emerging From Gaza Captivity
EU Moves to Use Frozen Russian Assets to Buy U.S. Weapons for Ukraine
Europe Emerges as the Biggest Casualty in U.S.-China Rare Earth Rivalry
HSBC Confronts Strategic Crossroads as NAB Seeks Only Retail Arm in Australia Exit
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
Surging AI Startup Valuations Fuel Bubble Concerns Among Top Investors
Australian Punter Archie Wilson Tears Up During Nebraska Press Conference, Sparking Conversation on Male Vulnerability
Australia Confirms U.S. Access to Upgraded Submarine Shipyard Under AUKUS Deal
“Firepower” Promised for Ukraine as NATO Ministers Meet — But U.S. Tomahawks Remain Undecided
Brands Confront New Dilemma as Extremists Adopt Fashion Labels
The Sydney Sweeney and Jeans Storm: “The Outcome Surpassed Our Wildest Dreams”
Erika Kirk Delivers Moving Tribute at White House as Trump Awards Charlie Presidential Medal of Freedom
British Food Influencer ‘Big John’ Detained in Australia After Visa Dispute
ScamBodia: The Chinese Fraud Empire Shielded by Cambodia’s Ruling Elite
French PM Suspends Macron’s Pension Reform Until After 2027 in Bid to Stabilize Government
Orange, Bouygues and Free Make €17 Billion Bid for Drahi’s Altice France Telecom Assets
Dutch Government Seizes Chipmaker After U.S. Presses for Removal of Chinese CEO
Bessent Accuses China of Dragging Down Global Economy Amid New Trade Curbs
U.S. Revokes Visas of Foreign Nationals Who ‘Celebrated’ Charlie Kirk’s Assassination
AI and Cybersecurity at Forefront as GITEX Global 2025 Kicks Off in Dubai
DJI Loses Appeal to Remove Pentagon’s ‘Chinese Military Company’ Label
EU Deploys New Biometric Entry/Exit System: What Non-EU Travelers Must Know
Australian Prime Minister’s Private Number Exposed Through AI Contact Scraper
Ex-Microsoft Engineer Confirms Famous Windows XP Key Was Leaked Corporate License, Not a Hack
China’s lesson for the US: it takes more than chips to win the AI race
Australia Faces Demographic Risk as Fertility Falls to Record Low
California County Reinstates Mask Mandate in Health Facilities as Respiratory Illness Risk Rises
Israel and Hamas Agree to First Phase of Trump-Brokered Gaza Truce, Hostages to Be Freed
×