Despite doubling its profits in 2018, Amazon did not pay a cent of federal income tax for the second consecutive year, according to an analysis by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy.
The big picture: Amazon actually received a rebate of $129 million — or an effective tax rate of -1% — thanks to tax credits and other breaks stemming from the GOP's 2017 tax cuts. The Washington Post's Chris Ingraham notes that while Amazon earned $11.2 billion in profit last year, it was able to pay a lower federal tax rate (1.5% in 2015) than the bottom 20% of American households.