Business Groups Oppose Expanded Access to Finances
Four Massachusetts business groups have opposed a house bill that would grant the state auditor's office expanded access to corporate financial information.
The bill, filed in December 2012 by State Auditor Suzanne M. Bump, would allow her office to review and evaluate corporate tax returns as part of an audit of the state's tax incentive programs. On March 26, in a hearing before the Joint Committee on Revenue, Bump said existing state laws do not give her office access to corporate tax return information, making an effective audit for fraud, waste and abuse impossible.
On the same day, the Associated Industries of Massachusetts, the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce, the Massachusetts Business Roundtable and the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation submitted a letter to the committee, detailing their collective opposition.
The groups said that providing an elected officials with such broad access to tax information sends a "chilling signal" to the Bay State business community.
"Privacy concerning tax returns is a bedrock principle for business and individuals in the state, and stripping corporations of that right will make Massachusetts a far less attractive place to run a business," the letter said.
According to the four groups, corporate tax returns are "rife" with confidential information, including proprietary information that is unrelated to the use of state tax credits. They said that allowing an agency beside the Department of Revenue to comb the data will create unnecessary risk for businesses' information to be used improperly.
The bill is still under the review of the committee.
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