Last week, legislators in hub airport states of Illinois, Georgia and
North Carolina all advanced proposals to end valuable handouts,
loopholes and tax breaks worth over $93 million per year to United
(NYSE:UAL), American (NASDAQ:AAL) and Delta (NYSE: DAL).
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On Wednesday, March 18, a majority of the North Carolina Senate signed
onto an economic incentive bill that would let American Airlines’
handout expire at the end of the year. The break is a cap on the
amount of sales tax on jet fuel American pays, expected to be worth
$15.5 million next year.
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On Thursday, March 19, the Illinois House Revenue and Finance
Committee voted in favor of a bill to close a tax loophole that United
Airlines and American Airlines use to avoid paying millions in local
sales taxes.
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On Friday, March 20, the Georgia Senate passed a transportation
funding package that would end Delta Air Lines’ tax break. The bill,
which passed the House earlier in March, would eliminate the state’s
estimated $25 million sales tax break on jet fuel for airlines.
In 2013, airlines received an estimated total of over $1 billion in tax
breaks from state and local governments on their jet fuel purchases.
A
new report by 12billion.org summarizes where some of those
valuable tax loopholes, exemptions, rebates, and caps have recently come
under critical public and legislative review. States include Illinois,
Georgia, North Carolina, Florida, Michigan, Washington and Oregon.
As state and local governments continue to struggle with challenging
budgets, the North American airline industry overall anticipates record
profit of $13.2 billion in 2015.
Copyright Business Wire 2015