Thursday, June 13, 2019

US Corporate Top Tax Rate by Year


From 1789 throughout the 1800s, the US federal government revenue was raised using Tariffs, Fees and Land Sales. By 1900, the US had expanded its land area from the original 13 colonies to 3.9 million square miles. After 1900, Income Taxes and Corporate Taxes replaced Tariffs and Land Sales and Fines were added.

The US Corporate Tax Rate started modestly at 1%, but increased to 6% in 1917, 12% in 1918 fund wars and pay war debt for World War I.  In 1922 it moved to 12.5% when US infrastructure was being built. The Depression brought it to 15% in 1935. Anticipating World War II, the corporate tax rose to 19% in 1938, 24% in 1940, 31% in 1941 and 40% in 1942 where it remained until 1950 when it decreased to 38%. I jumped to 50% in 1951 due to the Korean War, backed down to 48% in 1965 and jumped up to 53% in 1968 for the Vietnam War. Reagan got the corporate tax reduced to 34% by 1988.  Clinton raised it to 35% in 1993. Trump got it reduced to 21% for 2018.

US Corporate Top Tax Rate History from 1909 to 2019 is listed below.
1909 1% Taft
1916 2% Wilson
1917 6% WWI
1918 12% WWI
1919 10% WWI
1922 12.5% Harding
1925 13% Coolidge
1926 13.5%
1928 12%
1929 11% Hoover
1930 12% Dust Bowl
1932 13.8% Depression
1936 15% Roosevelt
1938 19% WWII
1940 24% WWII
1941 31% WWII
1942 40% WWII
1950 38% Truman
1951 51% Korean War
1952 52% Eisenhower
1964 50% Kennedy
1965 48%
1968 53%Vietnam
1970 49.2% Nixon
1971 48%
1979 46% Carter
1987 40% Reagan
1988 34%
1993 35% Clinton
2018 21% Trump 

By 2016, the US had failed to reduce the US Corporate Tax Rates, while all other countries lowered theirs to attract US manufacturing. Trump lowered the Corporate Taxes from the highest on the planet to the middle to attract US manufacturing back to the US to create jobs.  US Corporate Tax Rates rose with the Individual Tax Rates to pay for military foreign aid from 1917 to 2017.

Norb Leahy, Dunwoody GA Tea Party Leader


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