Washington, D.C. – March 11, 2024 – Former U.S. Senator John Breaux (D-LA), senior advisor for Saving America’s Family Enterprises (SAFE), issued the following statement responding to proposals in President Biden’s FY2025 budget that impose new taxes on unrealized gains:
“The Biden administration is right about the importance of tax fairness, but wrong on what to do about it. Taxing income that doesn’t exist–based largely on bureaucratic guesswork–goes against the principle of having a tax code that treats everyone fairly. And while the well-connected would work to find new loopholes, many farms and family-owned businesses would be forced to sell their assets just to pay the tax. Instead of imposing short-sighted and unworkable guess taxes, we should empower the IRS to focus on closing the tax gap–which the agency estimates can generate more than $850 billion in additional revenue. Enforcing the current tax code is the most direct and responsible way to ensure the wealthy pay what they owe–not new and unproven ‘wealth taxes’ with unintended consequences.”
About SAFE
Saving America’s Family Enterprises (SAFE) is a bipartisan research and education organization focused on comprehensive tax reforms that raise revenue, increase fairness, promote greater efficiency, and encourage companies to do more business in the United States.
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