Advertising Taxes

Every dollar spent on advertising and marketing by ANA members is fully deductible from federal corporate income tax as an "ordinary and necessary" business expense, as advertising is deemed as essential to business as office space, staff, equipment, research and development, and other expenses that help generate income and drive sales.

ANA works tirelessly to preserve this deduction on both the federal and state levels. We continue to fight for the full federal deductibility of advertising expenses, as has been permitted since the inception of the federal corporate income tax in the early 20^th century. On the state level, we strongly oppose efforts to tax any aspect of the advertising process.

IHS Markit Study Demonstrates the Importance of Advertising to the U.S. Economy

ANA and The Advertising Coalition (TAC) have released a new study conducted by IHS Markit that demonstrates the importance of advertising as a driving force in the United States economy. Among the findings:

Advertising supported $7.1 trillion in sales activity in 2020 — 19.4 percent of total U.S. economic output.
Each dollar spent on advertising expenses generates about $21 of sales.
Advertising supported 28.5 million, or 19.5 percent, of the 142 million jobs in the U.S. in 2014.
Every $1 million spent on annual advertising expenses supports 83 American jobs.
Every direct advertising job supported another 51 jobs across all industries.
The average salary for jobs ultimately supported by advertising was 12 percent above the national average.

While these findings cover the U.S. economy as a whole, the study also breaks down the importance of advertising to the economies of every state and Congressional district nationwide. This study is an important tool in helping ANA and TAC educate members of Congress and the executive branch on the role advertising plays in sustaining the U.S.'s economic vitality.

The Advertising Coalition (TAC)

ANA is a founding member of The Advertising Coalition (TAC), which includes the associations representing the nation's advertisers, advertising agencies, and media companies. For over three decades, TAC has worked to educate policymakers on the role advertising plays in the economy. It has also successfully turned back numerous efforts over those years to tax or restrict advertising.

State Advertising Taxes

Below is a list of each state tax bill that has been introduced so far in 2023:

Kentucky – HB 44 – would remove “marketing services” and other services related to advertising from last year’s tax overhaul

For more information on these proposals, please contact ANA's Government Relations team at washington@ana.net.