Facebook makes $1.1 billion, pays $0 in taxes, gets refund

Good CPAs, combined with a ridiculous tax code.  

There's a long list of companies that pay no taxes because they take advantage of every available incentive.

That's what is soooo ridiculous about anyone in Washington DC.... they talk out the side of their neck about the rich paying their share and increasing or decreasing tax rates.... when you could not catch a whale with the tax code the holes are so big.

And people argue over the stuff as if their is actually meaning to what they are saying. It's a complete joke, and there is not one bit of difference between (R)s and (D)s.

This might be unpopular or even wrong, but it seems to me that the receivers of those options are indeed taxed for the options when exercised. I know that my options are worth less than 70 cents on the dollar because I'm taxed the second I sell. Why would/should the company be taxed for paying employees? 

I think the bigger picture is more important though.  We need more entrepreneurs to start new businesses and employ people.  People need to have real incentives to take the risk to stick their necks on the line and try something new.  Rather than paying salaries that aren't scalable down in bad times and promote unethical behaviour, paying people in stock hopefully creates a 'better' type of employee that is more engaged with a company and not just doing a job.  

Really? They have games that cost money?

That's a good point.  Essentially, the Government gets one bite at the apple.  When it goes from the IPO to the pocket of the share owner.  

That's like taxing you when you make the money and then taxing you when you use the money.  Oh wait, they do that too. 

Hell yes. Redonculous. Actually the 55 and over crowd has I think surpassed other age groups in numbers of gamers online. Lot's of money shelled out for pixel *&$#.

So...does that mean that FB is not part of the 47% that do not pay taxes?  That's the question!

Facebook, huh?  Sounds like some bullshine to me. (said in my best crabby old man accent)

No, I don't have a facebook account.

but they are the job creators.   GE you have some competition

I understand the EIC for an individual but not for a business. 

You have to love our trainwreck of a tax code.  Sure, the rates are high, but it's the rate on your taxable income after everything is written off.  It's how the uberrich can claim they play a lower percentage than their employees.  They write a huge portion of their income off and pay a high rate on a small portion of their income. 

I'm in for a national sales tax then everybody pays taxes, rich, poor, middle class, drug dealers, illegals, tourists, everybody.  If you buy something within our borders you pay your share.  It works in Florida.

Not really picking a side here, though I tend to side with Facebook (In my opinion, private markets do a better job of distributing wealth than does the government), but they did not get back more than what they paid according to the article: "The refund comes on taxes they had paid in 2010 and 2011."

Question: I'm a pretty liberal guy, but what is the government entitled to that wealth as opposed to the people who earned it? I don't understand that mentality....

What state doesn't have a sales tax?

Oregon doesn't, they tried several times to pass one but it gets shut down every time. Its kinda nice to go buy something and pay whats on the price tag.

Deductible is even better than non-taxable.

However, that said...

I know several of you have run businesses, so you know this.  But for a C-Corp, it's one bite at the apple from the corporation and another bite from its employees.  It does feel unfair when you look at it from that perspective (assuming, of course, that the corporation ACTUALLY paid any taxes).

And this is where the small-mid sized businesses really get screwed.  Because they do pay taxes, despite being the "backbone of America" or whatever the politicians say to appease us.