CEO Pay Exceeds Taxes at 25 Companies, Study Finds

WASHINGTON  (AFP)--Twenty-five major U.S. corporations paid more to their chief executives than to federal tax collectors in 2010, with most of the companies receiving tax refunds, a liberal-leaning think tank said Wednesday.

The study by the  Institute for Policy Studies  comes ahead of another expected round of fierce partisan bickering over whether the debt-laden U.S. should raise taxes on the wealthy and close loopholes to boost revenues.

The 25 CEOs -- many from well-known companies such as  General Electric Co.  ( GE),  Verizon Communications Inc.  (VZ),  Boeing Co.  (BA) and  eBay Inc.  ( EBAY ) -- were among the 100 highest-paid chief executives in the country, with 2010 pay averaging  $16.7 million , the report said.

And 22 of the 25 had received pay increases that year.

The 25 companies reported average global profits of  $1.9 billion , and 18 of them operated subsidiaries in offshore tax havens, the report said.

"Corporations don't dodge taxes. The people who run corporations do. And these people -- America's CEOs -- are reaping awesomely lavish rewards for the tax dodging they have their corporations do," the institute said.

The study comes after months of bickering between President  Barack Obama , who has called for raising taxes on the wealthy and closing loopholes to address the massive U.S. debt, and Republicans, who argue such measures would cripple already-slow economic growth by stifling job creation.

The study found that 20 of the companies spent more on lobbying efforts than on taxes, and 18 gave more to political campaigns than to the U.S. government.

The most profitable of the 25 companies was  General Electric , which reported  $ 5.1 billion  in U.S. pretax income last year and received a  $3.3 billion  tax refund, according to the report.

Officials from the companies in question couldn't immediately be reached, but a  Verizon  spokesman quoted in the  New York Times  disputed the findings, saying the company CEO's pay was tied to future stock performance.

The spokesman, Roberto Varretoni, was quoted as saying that Verizon's  ax benefit had to be seen alongside billions of dollars in deferred taxes that " will be paid over time."

"The fact is, Verizon  fully complies with all tax laws and pays its fair share of taxes," Varretoni said.

  (END) Dow Jones Newswires
   08-31-11   0845ET