Research: Very low effective tax rates often do not reflect high levels of corporate tax avoidance

Companies’ low effective tax rates have drawn the ire of politicians, policymakers, the media and the public. As Congress begins debating changes to corporate taxes to partially fund a $3.5 trillion budget plan, the Biden administration is raising questions about how much corporations pay in taxes. But new research from the Indiana University Kelley School of Business and research colleagues elsewhere suggests very low effective tax rates often do not reflect high levels of tax avoidance.