Letters: Dec. 7, 1998

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Thanks and congratulations on your corporate-welfare series [SPECIAL REPORT, Nov. 9 and 16]. Quite a number of legislators, economists and think tanks have been working for several years, trying to focus attention on this widespread, wasteful and escalating practice. It is having a serious negative impact on our distressed urban areas, as well as diverting resources from education, research and needed infrastructure repair and maintenance. In short, it is impairing the systemic efficiency of our country, and will put us at a disadvantage in global competition in terms of price and quality, unless, of course, our foreign competition emulates our practices. CHARLES F. HORN State Senate Columbus, Ohio

Including the Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im) as an example of "corporate welfare" is a mistake. Ex-Im provides market-rate loans--not grants--to help any exporting company, regardless of size, sell abroad. The $5 billion Congress appropriated to Ex-Im over the past six years has been repaid or is in the process of being repaid! Also, there are 77 other foreign-government export-credit agencies already helping their local companies seize export opportunities from American workers. If there were no Ex-Im, most likely Europe's Airbus would win many, if not all, of the foreign aircraft deals away from Boeing, thus displacing even more American workers than cited in your article. A small percentage difference in an interest rate can mean millions of dollars of savings to foreign customers, which can make or break an export deal. DONALD A. MANZULLO U.S. Representative 16th District, Illinois Washington

Your basic premise was flawed. Why shouldn't corporations try to avoid paying taxes? Corporations are owned by stockholders. Stockholders are taxpaying individuals who are taxed on any dividends they receive from the corporation and are taxed on any gain in the value of their stock. The corporations are taxed, and the stockholders are taxed. So all of the productive activity of the corporation is taxed twice. If you want to investigate the "fleecing of America," why not investigate why the government thinks it needs all this twice-taxed money? Investigate how much money is spent spending the money that it should not be spending in the first place. DAVID R. ANDERSON St. Louis, Mo.

Thank you for the series on corporate welfare. Your report is frightening, infuriating and enlightening. But will anything change? Not while legislators are building up their retirement accounts. Pity those attempting to find tax dollars to improve the standards of education, among all those others being cheated because of these unfair practices. EVELYN EVANS Seattle