苹果CEO蒂姆•库克不满欧盟税收法案

AS IT IS 2016-09-04 Apple CEO Tim Cook Upset about EU Tax Bill 苹果CEO蒂姆•库克不满欧盟税收法案

After a two-year investigation¹, the European Union (EU) says the American company Apple must pay over $14 billion in back taxes to Ireland.

The EU’s competition commissioner² said the company did not pay enough in taxes between 2003 and 2014. She questioned how anyone might think that Apple’s 2014 Irish tax rate of five thousandths of one percent was fair.

The European Commission is responsible for making official decisions for the European Union. The Commission follows rules designed to make sure businesses in Europe compete fairly.

In late August, the Commission announced that it would attempt to recover the back taxes from Apple. It said the company reported earnings³ for all of the computers, computer tablets and mobile phones it sold in Europe through its office in Ireland. Because of a tax deal with the Irish government, Apple never had to pay much tax on its earnings.

The Competition Commission is not only investigating Apple. It is looking at deals between European countries and major international businesses including Starbucks, Fiat⁴, Amazon and McDonald’s.

Apple Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook denies the EU allegations. He said Apple paid $400 million in taxes in 2014, and his company paid more in taxes than any other business in Ireland.

The tax bill is not only causing concerns in Ireland and Europe. Government officials in the United States are also worried.

Josh Earnest is the spokesman for President Barack Obama. He said Americans could be hurt by the EU’s ruling if Apple is required to make the payment. He said the company then could legally reduce the billions of dollars it pays Ireland from the U.S. taxes it owes.

Earnest said the Obama administration is concerned EU officials decided⁵ to rule against Apple without first talking to the U.S. government.

The U.S Treasury⁶ Department called the EU’s decision unfair. It claimed the EU was targeting American companies for punishment recently. The commission denied that allegation.

On September 1, Tim Cook told an Irish newspaper that Apple would work with Irish officials to overturn Europe’s decision. He also said the tax ruling was politically motivated.

The European Commission said Ireland offered Apple the low tax rates in order to save thousands of Apple jobs within the country. It called the deal, “illegal.”

Ireland’s Minister of Finance, Michael Noonan, said his country will appeal the commission’s ruling. But if the tax is paid, it would be the largest ever in Europe.

Words in This Story

commissioner – n. a person who is responsible for a government office, agency or part of a government department

commission – n. a group of people who have been given the official job of finding information about something or controlling something

allegation – n. a statement saying that someone has done something wrong or illegal

motivate– v. to give someone a reason for doing something

1 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

2 commissioner   

n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员

参考例句：

• The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest.专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
• He was tapped for police commissioner.他被任命为警务处长。

3 earnings   

n.工资收人；利润，利益，所得

参考例句：

• That old man lives on the earnings of his daughter.那个老人靠他女儿的收入维持生活。
• Last year there was a 20% decrease in his earnings.去年他的收入减少了20%。

4 fiat   

n.命令，法令，批准；vt.批准，颁布

参考例句：

• The opening of a market stall is governed by municipal fiat.开设市场摊位受市政法令管制。
• He has tried to impose solutions to the country's problems by fiat.他试图下令强行解决该国的问题。

5 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

6 treasury   

n.宝库；国库，金库；文库

参考例句：

• The Treasury was opposed in principle to the proposals.财政部原则上反对这些提案。
• This book is a treasury of useful information.这本书是有价值的信息宝库。