Victor Fleischer has stepped down as co-chief tax counsel for Senate Finance Committee Democrats, just one year after signing on, in order to return to the University of San Diego faculty. In a Facebook post about his decision, Fleischer noted that he might have stuck it out longer if he felt the prospects for 2017 tax reform were stronger.
- Why it matters: Fleischer was the author of the 2006 academic paper on carried interest taxation that really kicked off a national debate over how hedge fund and private equity investors are taxed. Fleischer argued that carried interest – the percentage of investment profits retained by fund managers – should be treated as ordinary income, rather than at lower capital gains rates.
- Facts matter: Taxing carried interest.