« DAILY DOWNLOAD 9.7.10 | Home | NEW VIDEO: DAYTON ACKNOWLEDGES TRUSTS IN SOUTH DAKOTA »
DAYTON’S FINANCIAL HOLDINGS
By Luke Hellier | September 8, 2010
This came from the MNGOP today:
St. Paul- Republican Party of Minnesota leaders today called on Democrat gubernatorial candidate Mark Dayton to disclose any and all financial assets he shelters outside of the state of the Minnesota. During his campaign, Dayton has repeatedly demanded that the “rich” pay their “fair share” in taxes, but Dayton has long benefitted financially from trusts that are sheltered for tax purposes in South Dakota and holdings in the Cayman Islands and British Virgin Islands.
“Multimillionaire Mark Dayton has pledged to make the ‘rich’ pay their ‘fair share’ of taxes, but he has avoided paying his ‘fair share’ for years by sheltering his money out of state to avoid Minnesota taxes. Dayton has benefitted financially from sheltering trusts in South Dakota and his personal financial disclosure forms over the years have also revealed holdings in the Cayman Islands and the British Virgin Islands. It’s time for him to come clean with Minnesotans about his extensive financial interests sheltered outside of Minnesota. Mark Dayton appears to be practicing the do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do hypocrisy of the political elite — he wants everyone but himself to pay more,” said Republican Party of Minnesota Chairman Tony Sutton.
“Mark Dayton demands hard-working Minnesotans pay their ‘fair share’ of taxes but he’s long been a beneficiary of trusts in South Dakota which allow him to avoid paying his ‘fair share’ in our state. It’s time we got to the bottom of these trust funds and extensive financial holdings outside of Minnesota. Minnesotans deserve to know whether Dayton will finally pay his ‘fair share’ to Minnesota,” said Rep. Pat Garofalo, a member of the House Taxes Committee.
“Mark Dayton wants to raise taxes on middle-class Minnesotans, but this trust fund baby won’t even pay his self-identified ‘fair share’ of taxes. After making ‘tax the rich’ the mantra of his campaign, it’s clear that Dayton’s hypocrisy knows no bounds,” said Republican Party of Minnesota Deputy Chairman Michael Brodkorb.
Chairman Sutton called on Dayton to provide a full accounting of all financial assets he holds or has held outside the state of Minnesota. In addition, Chairman Sutton called on Dayton to provide specific answers to the following questions:
- In your “Deficit Solution” plan (item #3), you criticize snowbirds who maintain residences outside of Minnesota for six months and a day to avoid certain taxes, but why is it okay that your trust funds maintain residence outside of Minnesota 12 months a year?
- Have you ever asked your family members or the executor of your South Dakota trust funds to move these trusts to Minnesota? If not, why not?
- Have you ever asked your family members or the executor of your South Dakota trust funds whether you can divest? If not, why not?
- Will you ask for the release of the tax returns for your South Dakota trust funds?
- What tax benefits do you derive from your South Dakota trusts in comparison with the tax liability you would have were they in Minnesota?
- How much in Minnesota taxes have you avoided paying the state in your lifetime because of these arrangements? If you cannot answer this question, would you be willing to allow an independent referee to calculate it before Election Day?
- Can you explain your holdings in the well-known tax havens of the Cayman Islands and the British Virgin Islands that are listed on your Senate Financial Disclosure reports?
- Would you be willing to gift to the state of Minnesota all monies you would have been required to pay had your trusts been established in Minnesota?
Dayton Financial Assets Outside Minnesota: A Primer
Dayton Trusts In South Dakota:
2007 Senate Financial Disclosure Report: Dayton Holds At Least Two Complex Trusts Held In South Dakota. “GND 1950 Trust for BBD – nonpublicly traded holdings; Sioux Falls, SD. GBD Trust for BBD – nonpublicly traded holdings.” (Mark Dayton, United States Senate Financial Disclosure Report for Annual and Termination Reports, Page 17, January 27, 2007)
Dayton Taking Advantage Of A Law Changed In 1996. “Resident trust means a trust, except a grantor type trust, which either (1) was created by a will of a decedent who at death was domiciled in this state or (2) is an irrevocable trust, the grantor of which was domiciled in this state at the time the trust became irrevocable. For the purpose of this subdivision, a trust is considered irrevocable to the extent the grantor is not treated as the owner thereof under sections 671 to 678 of the Internal Revenue Code. The term ‘grantor type trust’ means a trust where the income or gains of the trust are taxable to the grantor or others treated as substantial owners under sections 671 to 678 of the Internal Revenue Code. This paragraph applies to trusts, except grantor type trusts, that became irrevocable after December 31, 1995, or are first administered in Minnesota after December 31, 1995.” (Minnesota Statute 290.01Subdivision 7b)
South Dakota Trust Experts: There Are Numerous Advantages To Having A Trust In South Dakota. “South Dakota is preferable as a place to locate a trust for many reasons some of which include: It has no limit on the life of its trusts; There is no South Dakota state income tax for the trusts or the individuals who are the trusts’ beneficiaries; It offers substantial protection from creditors of beneficiaries; South Dakota is part of the United States and the trusts for which North Point is trustee are not foreign trusts which can experience numerous problems with the U.S. Government and others.” (www.northpointtrust.com/benefits, accessed August 5, 2010)
Dayton’s Financial Interests In Cayman Islands, British Virgin Islands:
2007 Senate Financial Disclosure Report: Dayton Has Business Interests In Cayman Islands. According to Mark Dayton’s most recent Senate Financial Disclosure Report dated January 27, 2007, he reports as an asset China Renaissance Inc. which is described as a limited partnership based in the Cayman Islands. (Mark Dayton, United States Senate Financial Disclosure Report for Annual and Termination Reports, Page 17, January 27, 2007)
There are Numerous Advantages To Having A Limited Partnership In Cayman Islands. “If you are so inclined, you can set up a limited partnership. For this, you would need to get registered with the government agency that oversees the companies with limited partnership structures. The registration process is very similar to the institution of a foreign company, but in this case, the list of directors becomes the list of company partners. If you prefer not to divulge information about your partners and the amount of contributions that each partner has contributed to the company, you may set up a limited partnership with exemptions. With no paper trail on your assets, you and your partners can protect your financial assets better with this type of company; confidentiality of information is assured. Aside from the advantage of not being required to name the partners, your company will also be exempted from taxes for 50 years.” (Offshore Legal Services, “Cayman Islands Asset Protection: Understanding a Limited Partnership,” www.offshorelegal.org, accessed September 7, 2010)
Earlier In His Senate Career, Dayton Disclosed Holdings In British Virgin Islands, China, Cayman Islands. According to Mark Dayton’s 2000 Senate Financial Disclosure Report, he lists assets such as Purple Charta Investments Limited located in the British Virgin Islands. Stora Enzo Suzhou Papyrus Co. Ltd., Shanghal Grand Tower Steel Structure Co. Ltd., Jiangsu Atlas Aluminum Industry Co., Ltd. located in China. (Mark B. Dayton, United States Senate Financial Disclosure Report For Annual And Termination Reports, Pages 9-10, May 15, 2001)
View All Of Dayton’s Senate Disclosure Forms:
Dayton Has Repeatedly Demanded “Rich” Must Pay “Fair Share”; But Dayton Does Not Pay His Fair Share:
Watch Dayton Demand That The Rich Pay Their “Fair Share”
- “For instance: Sen. Mark Dayton, who visited Worthington Wednesday, is an advocate of a flat tax, where wealthier Minnesotans would, he said, pay their fair share — as much as those in the state with lower incomes. That position carries some significant risk, as one could easily counter that raising the top tax rate would only hasten the move of wealthier Minnesotans and small business owners to other tax states.” (Editorial, “Painful reality: Cuts alone won’t do it,” The Daily Globe, February 12, 2010)
- “Dayton, a DFLer, has a simple answer to lop off two-thirds of the problem: taxes. ‘Make taxes progressive. Make the richest people in Minnesota pay their fair share,’ Dayton said. He said hiking taxes on Minnesota’s highest earners could raise $4 billion for the state in two years, much more than recent tax increase proposals.” (Baird Helgeson and Rachel Stassen-Berger, “A $6 BILLION PROBLEM; Gubernatorial candidates float ideas like taxing the rich, cutting human services and putting slots at horse-racing tracks.” Star Tribune, May 23, 2010)
- “The former U.S. Senator, who will vie in an August primary against House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher and Matt Entenza, released two new television ads Monday putting his push for higher taxes front and center. ‘We’re going to make the rich pay their fair share of taxes,’ Dayton says in one ad. In another, the announcer says, ‘Mark Dayton will close the tax loopholes for the rich.’” (Rachel Stassen-Berger, “Dayton pushing his ‘Tax the Rich’ message in two new ads,” Star Tribune, June 29, 2010)
- “Former U.S. Sen. Mark Dayton unveiled two new TV ads today, both with the message that as governor, he plans to end tax loopholes for the rich. ‘Were going to make the rich pay their fair share of taxes. If the richest Minnesotans paid the same percent of their income on state and local taxes as everybody else, that’d be over $4 billion in additional revenue,’ Dayton says in the first one and he’d use the funds to cut the deficit and boost education.” (Paul Schmelzer, “In new ads, Dayton vows to make wealthy pay fair share of taxes,”The Minnesota Independent, June 29, 2010)
Dayton Doesn’t Pay His Fair Share. “The higher tax would apply to Dayton himself, who is among the heirs to the Dayton’s department store fortune. He said he discussed the idea with wealthy members of his family, whom he said don’t agree with him. ‘I said, ‘What is fair? Do you think it’s fair that you, if you’re making over a million a year in income are paying only two-thirds of what some making $20,000, $30,000, $40,000 a year is paying in Minnesota?’’ Republicans openly scoffed at Dayton’s idea. They called state millionaires the creators of jobs in Minnesota’s job. Republicans also urged Dayton, himself, to pay more — if he wants to. ‘Is Senator Dayton providing more voluntarily to the Department of Revenue to pay his so-called fair share?’ asked Michael Brodkorb, the Associate Chairman of the Minnesota Republican Party. ‘I doubt that he is.’ Dayton’s office said Dayton does not pay more in taxes than the state requires, but if he is elected governor he’ll pay more because of the millionaire tax he intends to pass.” (Pat Kessler, “Mark Dayton Proposes ‘Millionaire Tax,’” WCCO.com, April 27, 2010)
Tags: 2010 Election, 2010 Governor
Topics: 2010 Election, 2010 Governor | 2 Comments »
September 8th, 2010 at 9:18 PM
So when is Tony Sutton going to call on Emmer to release HIS tax returns and all other financial disclosure forms?
September 8th, 2010 at 9:33 PM
AC has a point. It’s transparent that Mark Dayton is a tax dodging, deduction hogging, trust-fund baby drunk, mentally ill disgraced former Senator.
No fair.