Failed energy giant Enron avoided taxes by using a series of transactions so complex that America's Internal Revenue Service (IRS) had trouble understanding them, according to a congressional report released today.
"Enron not only engaged in accounting gimmicks to boost stock prices, but Enron repeatedly abused the tax code. And they had help from investment bankers, lawyers, and accountants," said Montana Senator Max Baucus, the top Democrat on the Finance Committee, which is responsible for writing tax law in the upper chamber.
"The report reads like a conspiracy novel, with some of the nation's finest banks, accounting firms and attorneys working together to prop up the biggest corporate farce of this century," said Senate Finance Committee Chairman Charles Grassley, an Iowa Republican.
The Joint Committee on Taxation report released at today's hearing found the energy giant avoided all federal income taxes for several years in the late 1990s.
Enron filed for bankruptcy in December 2001 after a series of off-the-books partnerships which it had used to hide debt, inflate profits, and generally cook the books came to the attention of regulators, forcing it to restate its financial accounts.
AFP