DSCC Statement On New Report That Multi-Millionaire Ron Johnson’s Family Trust & Business Used Loopholes To Avoid Paying State Income Taxes

In response to new reporting from WKOW revealing that multi-millionaire Ron Johnson’s family trust used a loophole to avoid paying state taxes since 2016 – and that his company also did not pay any state taxes for the last several years – Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee spokesperson Amanda Sherman-Baity issued the following statement:

“This latest revelation only reinforces why voters despise Ron Johnson: he’s used his time in Washington to enrich himself and his wealthy donors, hurting Wisconsin families in the process. At every opportunity Johnson is looking out for one person: himself – and that’s exactly why Wisconsinites will reject him in November.”

Read and watch the report for yourself:

WKOW: From six-figure tax bills to $0: Why trust fund set up by Sen. Johnson no longer owes state taxes

• State records show a trust fund started by Republican Sen. Ron Johnson hasn’t paid any Wisconsin taxes since 2016.

• Democrats argue a state tax credit allowing the trust fund, which Johnson set up for his three children, to save millions of dollars in recent years is another sign of a system skewed toward the wealthy.

• Tax records obtained from the Wisconsin Department of Revenue showed the Ronald Johnson and Jane Johnson Irrevocable Endowment Trust paid between $400,000 and $920,000 annually in state taxes between 2011, when Johnson was sworn into his first term as a U.S. Senator, and 2015.

• From 2016 on, however, the trust fund didn’t pay a single cent in state taxes.

• Democratic strategist Joe Zepecki said the tax applying to Johnson’s family trust fund symbolizes a broken tax structure. “We know that the system has been rigged by people like Senator Johnson for people like Senator Johnson for way too long,” Zepecki said.

• Johnson’s stance on taxes has drawn scrutiny from critics since his push to expand tax cuts in 2017…. A ProPublica analysis found two of the three biggest beneficiaries were Wisconsinites among Johnson’s biggest donors.

• State records also showed the Oshkosh plastics company Johnson once oversaw hasn’t paid state taxes since 2013. Johnson owned five percent of the company during his time in the Senate.

• When he sold his share of Pacur in 2020, he reported to the Senate the sale made him between $5 million and $25 million.

WKOW (WATCH): Sen. Johnson Trust Fund Paid No States Taxes Since 2016

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