Which Bay Area Tech Companies Are Paying No Federal Taxes?

Image: Denys Nevozhai via Unsplash

The spectacular wealth of Bay Area tech firms is driving up the cost of everything from your rent to a loaf of bread. But many of these companies are paying nothing whatsoever in federal taxes, racking up billions in profits while homelessness runs rampant, our infrastructure is crumbling, and income inequality actively destroys whatever is left of the American dream. 

Thanks to the 2017 Trump tax cut that is still in effect, corporate tax avoidance is at a staggering all-time high. The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy did a lengthy analysis of which U.S. corporations pay no taxes, and found that 55 companies were able to avoid their 21% statutory corporate tax rate and pay not even a damned dime. A few of these companies are based right here in the Bay Area, so let’s take a look at which local tech firms are making hundreds of millions, or even billions, and not paying a cent in federal income taxes.

Salesforce made $2.6 billion in profit last year. It paid zero in federal taxes and is receiving a $12 million refund per @iteptweets https://t.co/AyaJYouoSM

— Roland Li (@rolandlisf) April 5, 2021

SALESFORCE

Oh sure, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff makes a big show of his so-called charitable generosities. But his company paid absolutely no federal income taxes on $2.6 billion in 2020 revenue. In fact, those assholes are getting a $12 million refund on their no taxes paid whatsoever.

If you paid $14.99 a month for a Zoom Pro membership, you paid more to Zoom than it paid in federal income taxes even as it made $660 million in profits last year – a 4,000 percent increase since 2019. Yes. It's time to end a rigged tax code that benefits the wealthy & powerful. https://t.co/P6hQnpWAPT

— Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) March 21, 2021

ZOOM

San Jose-based video conference service Zoom saw a 4,000% increase in profits during the pandemic, and graciously thanked its customers by using a stock-based compensation trick to pay no taxes at all on $660 billion in profit.

ADVANCED MICRO DEVICES

The Santa Clara semiconductor company Advanced Micro Devices apparently makes microprocessors and motherboard chips. But what they don’t make is federal tax payments on their $1.65 billion in profits last year.