Baldwin Challenges Opioid Companies ‘Abusive’ Tax Deductions
Letter from senators to IRS warns of deductions for legal expenses due to companies role in opioid epidemic.
Sen. Tammy Baldwin has joined other Senate colleagues in calling on the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to challenge tax deductions by opioid companies which the senators have called “abusive.” Such deductions could stem from settlements opioid companies have paid because of their role in the opioid epidemic.
Signed by 12 elected officials, including Baldwin, the letter notes that four companies involved in a multi-district opioid litigation plan to claim billions in tax deductions for expenses related to a pending $26 billion settlement. “Similarly, in 2019, a judge ordered one of these companies to pay $572 million to the state of Oklahoma for misleading marketing of its opioid products. Based on this reporting, we are concerned that opioid wholesalers and drug companies may mischaracterize legal settlement expenses in order to claim tax deductions under tax code section 162(f), which allows the deduction of restitution payments.”
The letter continues, “we strongly encourage the IRS to fully enforce the tax code by challenging any erroneous interpretations of these recent regulations that opioid companies may use in an attempt to claim tax deductions for legal settlement expenses.” The letter is the latest in series of actions Baldwin and others have taken against top opioid companies, which have fueled the opioid crisis.
Reprinted with permission of Wisconsin Examiner.
More about the Opioid Crisis
- AG Kaul Meets with EMS Leave Behind Program Recipients - Wisconsin Department of Justice - Sep 17th, 2024
- MKE County: Crowley Signs Opioid Program Funding - Graham Kilmer - Sep 10th, 2024
- Serenity Inns Opens New Addiction Treatment Center in Milwaukee - Serenity Inns - Aug 14th, 2024
- MKE County: County Nearly Doubles Narcan Vending Machines - Graham Kilmer - Aug 12th, 2024
- Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley Announces Placement of Eight Additional Harm Reduction Vending Machines - County Executive David Crowley - Aug 12th, 2024
- Milwaukee’s Native Community Faces Surge in Opioid Deaths - Trisha Young - Jul 8th, 2024
- MKE County: County Awards $2.8 Million To Non-Profit Opioid Programs - Graham Kilmer - Jul 2nd, 2024
- MKE County: County To Get $3 Million From Kroger In Opioid Settlement - Graham Kilmer - Jul 1st, 2024
- Court Decision Holds Up Wisconsin’s $70 Million Drug Settlement - Sarah Lehr - Jul 1st, 2024
- MKE County: Opioid Settlement Will Fund 7 New, Expanded Abatement Efforts - Graham Kilmer - Jun 28th, 2024
Read more about Opioid Crisis here