Enterprise Risk Management and Corporate Tax Avoidance

Abstract

This study examines the impact of enterprise risk management (ERM) programs on corporate tax planning. ERM is a holistic approach to managing an enterprise’s entire portfolio of risks (COSO 2004, 2017). We expect that enhanced coordination across business units as a result of ERM allows firms to exploit tax avoidance opportunities and increase tax effectiveness. We hand-collect data on ERM adoption for a sample of S&P 500 firms from 1993 to 2016. We empirically document that firms with ERM programs have lower cash effective tax rates (ETRs) and higher tax effectiveness than firms without ERM. Additionally, we find that the relation between ERM and tax avoidance is stronger among financially constrained firms, suggesting that, when faced with financial constraints, firms with ERM are better able to seek out alternative cash sources.