Border Tax Fight Divides American Industry

The fight over a proposed border-adjusted tax that is under consideration in the U.S. House of Representatives is being rejoined, and the issue is cutting across American industries.

Chief executive officers, many of them from the retail sector, oppose the levy, a centerpiece of House Speaker Paul Ryan’s agenda, and are renewing a push to stop the tax, which would replace the existing corporate income tax with a 20% levy on U.S. companies’ domestic sales and imports and exclude exports.

The American Made Coalition, whose members include Archer Daniels Midland, Boeing and Caterpillar, believes the current tax system is outdated and needs to be transformed. The group backs competitive tax rates for small and large business, a modern territorial system and the border adjustment of businesses taxes, and it believes these changes are needed to leveling the playing field for American-made goods and services and to stimulate creation of American jobs, investment and manufacturing.

On the other side of the argument are companies that believe a border tax will hurt consumers. Several coalitions of companies have formed who oppose the tax, including Americans for Affordable Products and the Retail Industry Leaders Association. Among the companies opposed to the tax are Abercrombie & Fitch, Best Buy, BJ’s Wholesale, Macy’s and Lord & Taylor.

In Favor of the Border-Adjusted Tax

Aerospace Industries Association

Archer Daniels Midland

Blue Diamond Growers

Boeing

Caterpillar

Celanese

Celgene

Cook Medical

CoorsTek

Cummins Allison

Dow Chemical

Electroimpact

Eli Lilly

Equifax

Fortive

GE

Honeywell

Johnson & Johnson

McIlhenny

Merck

MillerCoors

Neutral Posture

Oracle

Pfizer

Port Clinton Manufacturing

Qualcomm

Raytheon

S&P Global

United Technologies

Varian Medical Systems

Opposed to the Border-Adjusted Tax