RILA supports meaningful, broad-based reform of both the corporate and individual tax code to reduce burdensome complexities and spur investments that will promote job creation. 

Corporate Tax Reform

With the dubious distinction of being the country with the highest effective tax rate in the industrialized world, the U.S. corporate tax code is in critical need of a fundamental overhaul. The combination of high rates, repeated Congressional changes, and constantly expiring provisions depress business investment and makes long-term planning nearly impossible for business taxpayers.

The retail industry faces additional challenges due to its disproportionately high domestic effective tax rate. At 36.4 percent, the retail industry pays a significantly higher effective corporate income tax rate than most other industry sectors. In fact, the retail industry’s effective corporate tax rate is nearly 10 percentage points higher than the average for all other industries. 

Under current law, the retail industry has the fourth highest domestic effective tax rate out of the 18 major U.S. industrial sectors. Given the enormous employment footprint of the retail industry, comprehensive tax reform could stimulate job growth in the retail sector and the industries supported by retail.

Individual Tax Reform

No industry is more in tune with the challenges that today’s consumers face than the retail industry. The same compliance challenges that burden retailers burden their customers and small businesses. Comprehensive tax reform is incomplete without meaningful reform of the individual tax code that simplifies compliance for taxpayers and puts more money in their pockets.