Kamala Harris proposes raising corporate tax rate to 28%

FILE PHOTO: U.S. Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris speaks at an event at the Hendrick Center for Automotive Excellence in Raleigh, North Carolina, U.S., August 16, 2024. / REUTERS/Jonathan Drake/File Photo

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris is proposing to increase the corporate tax rate to 28 percent from 21 percent if she wins a November election against Republican rival Donald Trump, her campaign said on Aug.19.

Harris campaign spokesperson James Singer said the move would be part of "a fiscally responsible way to put money back in the pockets of working people and ensure billionaires and big corporations pay their fair share."

When Trump was president, he slashed the corporate tax rate to 21 percent from 35 percent and implemented other tax breaks that are set to expire next year. Trump has vowed to make the cuts permanent.

The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a nonpartisan advocacy group, said that Harris' proposal to raise the corporate income tax rate to 28 percent would reduce the U.S. deficit by $1 trillion over a decade.

Changes to the U.S. tax code require approval by Congress. Democrats and Republicans are in a tight battle for control of the Senate and the House of Representatives, both up for grabs in the Nov. 5 election.

Harris, a Democrat, has pledged to maintain President Joe Biden's promise not to raise taxes on people who make $400,000 or less a year.

In an economic policy speech last week, Harris outlined proposals to cut taxes for most Americans, ban "price gouging" by grocers, and build more affordable housing as part of the "opportunity economy" she plans to pursue if she wins the White House.