Part of the problem with the corporate tax is that benefits for specific industries and companies have created a labyrinth "beyond the mind of man to comprehend," says Christian. Edward McCaffery, chair of the University of Southern California Institute on Federal Taxation, says the code's complexity and pliability penalize smaller firms. "Accountants have been making a killing by peddling complex tax shelter schemes to minimize or avoid the corporate tax. Big firms can afford that; mid- and small-size firms often can't," he says.

Divvying up. One proposed reform that might sit well with a public disgusted by recent corporate behavior is eliminating the double taxation of dividends. Now, they are taxed as corporate profit and then again as income received by shareholders. That can diminish the appeal of dividends and give cover to corporate managers who prefer to hoard or invest a firm's profits. Some plans would remove one level of tax, but others would go all the way by killing both the corporate and personal levy on dividends. That kind of approach, some argue, could revive dividends and bolster stock prices.

Political reality is causing some proponents of change to push for major refurbishing of the corporate tax in lieu of repeal. Jason Thomas, staff economist at Citizens for a Sound Economy, suggests promoting simplicity and investment by revising depreciation rules that require the cost of new equipment to be deducted over time. He would let firms deduct the entire cost when the item is bought. Congress, meanwhile, is considering proposals to reduce the taxation of foreign profits of U.S. firms and to reshape incentives for exports.

But no matter what the level of enforcement or collection, critics say the corporate tax hits more than just the rich and powerful. "It is a cost that is passed on to consumers in higher prices, to investors in reduced dividends or capital gains, and to workers in lessened wages," says economist Thomas.

To all of which Lee Sheppard, an attorney and contributing editor of Tax Notes, has a ready answer. The corporate tax, she says, is not a cost that is passed on but comes straight out of profits. "Corporations just don't want to pay taxes; there's a lot of whining." What the antitaxers are waiting for is a calmer and financially robust climate in which they can get more respect.

Paying Uncle Sam

Over the past half century, individuals have been paying an increasing share of the income tax burden, as companies have found more and more ways to lower their tax bills by maximizing deductions, deferring taxes, and using offshore tax havens, and milking other shelters.

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