Corporate Social Responsibility and Taxation : An Evolving Theory

With increased technology and access to information, corporations have evolved in order to reflect the concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in their global business strategies. Some companies, such as Starbucks Corporation, have taken this concept a step further and chose to voluntarily pay additional taxes in order to appease the public. This article discusses some of the conclusions from a coming Houston Business and Tax Law Journal article in which Dr. Narotzki discusses how CSR, combined with the initiative of responsible tax planning, can improve harmful tax practices. Although it is perfectly legal to minimize tax liability, it is often debated whether or not it is morally ethical. In today's society, corporations hold just as much power, if not more, than political affiliates. Dr. Narotzki argues that it is for this reason that many individuals have started looking to multinational companies to act on a more socially responsible level than they have in the past. By pairing CSR with the initiative of reducing harmful tax competition, Dr. Narotzki believes a new business standard can be achieved that will redistribute wealth through taxes to local economies. Bringing awareness of this issue and reinforcing the idea of creating a standard to citizens will help to build an economy that fosters responsible tax planning and shifts at least some of the burden of tax off individuals, and more onto multinational corporations