Can You Fleece Me Now? Verizon Among Nation's Top Tax Dodgers: Report

​Verizon Communications has been one of the nation's biggest tax dodgers for the past three years, according to a new report that is to be released today.

"Unpaid Bills: How Verizon Shortchanges Government Through Tax
Dodging and Subsidies" is to be unveiled at a press conference held by the Communications Workers of America and the groups Citizens for Tax Justice and Good Jobs First.

Verizon manipulates state revenue rules, seeks economic development subsidies and structures its business and tax affairs to produce a negative federal income tax rate, according to a preview on the report that will also reveal the communications giant has received state and local tax subsidies in at least 13 states. The New York City-based corporation has also put the "Reverse Morris Trust" tax loophole to extensive use, avoiding $1.5 billion in taxes on the sale of its landlines and other assets.

The communications company earlier showed up on the Citizens for Tax Justice radar when the group participated with the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy to release a study called "Corporate Taxpayers and Corporate Tax Dodgers, 2008-2010." Out of 280 corporations analyzed, 78 that did not pay federal taxes in at least one of the past three years. Verizon was one of those.

This morning's presenters say the new report is especially timely as the congressional "super committee" meets on budget and tax issues.