Thursday, February 8, 2018
WASHINGTON, DC -- A massive budget agreement headed for a vote in the Senate contains a provision that would save Newman’s Own from a thorny tax problem that threatens Paul Newman’s iconic food company.
Tax and Regulatory Issues
Thursday, February 1, 2018
NORWALK, CT -- Newman’s Own Foundation has reached the milestone of $500 million in donations since 1982, when the late actor Paul Newman began selling salad dressing and devoting profits to charities. But the foundation is inching closer to a self-proclaimed April deadline at which point it has indicated it could begin the process of soliciting buyers for the operating company that has been the engine that generates its funds. That would happen if Congress does not create an exemption for huge excise taxes it faces under the new Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.
Wednesday, January 17, 2018
WESTPORT, CT -- Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy wrote to Senate leadership Wednesday asking that a provision to protect the Westport-based Newman’s Own Foundation from a costly tax bill be included in ongoing federal budget negotiations. When Paul Newman died in 2008, ownership of the actor's ...
Thursday, January 11, 2018
WESTPORT, CT -- Newman's Own, the popular purveyor of philanthropic pasta sauce, will be forced to put itself up for sale or pay crushing fines this year due to an obscure provision in the tax code. "It's not a possibility — it's an absolute certainty that we would have to divest," Bob Forrester, chief executive of the Newman's Own Foundation, told CNBC. On Wednesday, Forrester is slated to meet with lawmakers in hopes of a securing a last-minute legislative fix, potentially as part of any deal to fund ...
Friday, January 5, 2018
WESTPORT, CT -- Newman’s Own, the Westport food company founded by Paul Newman, faces a crippling tax penalty that threatens the iconic Connecticut’s company’s philanthropic mission. Newman’s Own Foundation owns 100 percent of Newman’s Own food company. The IRS gave the foundation five years to divest from the company. In 2013, it was granted another five-year waiver, which is set to expire in November. When it does, the IRS will levy a 200 percent tax on the foundation’s assets. There are about 25 other charities based on the Newman's Own model, with a for-profit company on one side and a foundation funneling those profits into philanthropy on the other, Forrester said. He plans to return to Washington and redouble his push for a legislative solution. “We’re committed to this, and we’re going to fight for this,” he said. “I think these next six weeks are going to decide things.”
Tuesday, January 2, 2018
WESTPORT, CT -- A glitch in the Republican tax overhaul has created an uncertain future for Newman’s Own Foundation and the food company it operates. Under the 1969 tax law, Newman’s Own had five years to divest itself from the business after Newman’s death in 2008, or face a 200 percent tax on its assets. Newman’s Own was able to get congressional support for a waiver to extend that an additional five years. That waiver expires in November 2018.