Protecting Family Offices in Tax & Regulatory Legislation
INTRODUCTION
On behalf of Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck (Brownstein) and Jarabek and Company, thank you for the opportunity to present our assessment of the tax and regulatory landscape for family offices in the current reconciliation debate.
Interested parties are urged to engage now, as there is still a window of opportunity to influence the interests of the industry. To that end, Brownstein and Jarabek are partnering to form a Coalition of family offices to present a unified front in advocating for protecting our country’s economic growth and wealth creation. To secure a brighter financial future for all taxpayers, the Coalition will encourage lawmakers to consider the full implications of legislative proposals that may unintentionally lead to economic decline by fundamentally changing the ways in which assets, capital and investments are taxed.
OVERVIEW
The Coalition will provide the ground support necessary to neutralize efforts to enact legislation, such as the taxation of unrealized asset accrual; the taxation of financial transactions; and the recharacterization of capital gains and carried interest distributions as “ordinary income” subject to, among other things, uncapped payroll, Medicare, and Social Security taxes.
The Coalition will provide an opportunity for industry experts to interact directly with the policymakers and congressional staff who draft and debate these issues daily. When considering these complex and nuanced legislative proposals, it is easy to overlook the true effects on investment, innovation and economic prosperity. In light of this, the Coalition will be well positioned to provide expert feedback and offer a unique perspective to members of Congress and their staff.
Coalition Structure
We will be structured as a loose coalition of members. Joe Jarabek of Jarabek and Company will serve as the executive director of the effort, and along with the internal Brownstein team, will provide:
-
Direct federal advocacy covering both chambers of Congress, including the tax writing committees, relevant congressional caucuses and party leadership.
-
Opportunities for coalition members to engage with members of Congress, their staff and third-party groups (e.g., think tanks and influencers).
-
Timely analysis of and actionable intelligence on all relevant federal legislative and campaign developments impacting the Coalition’s efforts.
-
A regular cadence of updates from Washington, in the form of a weekly newsletter.
-
Access to podcasts and video briefs by the Brownstein team on financial services-related content.
-
Opportunities for Coalition members to participate in quarterly meetings, as well as participation on regularly scheduled calls to provide updates on advocacy efforts.
Budget
Membership requires a flat fee payable to Brownstein. The initial monthly fee will be $5,000 for each individual Coalition member-participant or a single annual payment of $60,000. As the Coalition grows, Brownstein may increase its total and comprehensive monthly fee until it reaches a $75,000 monthly fee cap.
The development of any additional white papers or communications materials will be approved by Coalition members and be billed as an additional cost.
PERSONNEL QUALIFICATIONS
Joe Jarabek | Founder and President
614-323-9390 | jarabek@jarabekandco.com
Jarabek & Company is based on foundational experience in public policy and business strategy. The firm's initial expertise was in political, legislative, and regulatory arenas, and grew through a significant experience navigating domestic and international markets on behalf of business clients. This unique and broad experience allows us to comprehensively advise clients on integrated public policy and business strategy goals. Over the past two decades, the firm has developed expertise and efficiency in assisting family and closely held business clients in achieving results in government affairs and business objectives at home and abroad.
Joe Jarabek has a strong history of involvement in politics that dates back to the Bush Administration, including over 20 years of experience in campaign strategy and implementation, fundraising, media relations, and public event management. Joe has consulted on numerous political campaigns at various levels of government.
Russ Sullivan | Shareholder
202-383-4423 | rsullivan@jbhfs.com
Russ Sullivan is one of the top tax attorneys and advocates in the country. When companies face risks in Washington, D.C., they turn to Russ to develop creative solutions that save their industry. For Fortune 50 companies, start-ups and national trade associations alike, Russ translates federal policy and the U.S. tax code for clients’ boards and members and identifies untapped opportunities. He provides clients with clarity when they need it most, offers critical information for developing smart business strategies, and engages the Treasury Department and tax-writing committees on Capitol Hill to advance clients’ domestic and international tax priorities.
In addition to advocating on tax policy, Russ represents clients’ interests on health care, pension planning, trade, energy, financial services and economic development policies. He worked firsthand on many of these issues during his 14 years of service on the Senate Finance Committee. During his time in Congress, Russ saw some of the most important issues within the business community come before the committee and helped draft landmark legislation such as the 2001 tax legislation, the 2005 and 2007 Energy Policy Acts, and the Affordable Care Act, Russ leverages these expertise’s to provide clients with contextual insight into current tax and health care policy debates.
Harold Hancock | Shareholder
202-383-4422 | hhandcock@bhfs.com
Harold Hancock offers technical tax advice for planning transactions and investments, and he resolves complex policy and regulatory issues by engaging key officials in Congress, the Treasury Department and the White House. As former counsel to three House Ways and Means Committee chairs, including incumbent Ranking Member Kevin Brady (R-TX), Harold identifies and secures vital tax credits, deductions and exemptions for domestic and international corporations.
With a deep understanding of the U.S. tax code, Harold’s value lies in his ability to develop creative and credible policy solutions that address his clients’ needs. He then distills those proposals into messaging policymakers and regulators find compelling while also leveraging his personal relationships across Washington, D.C. to reach key decision-makers. Whether Harold is advocating for a tax policy before members on the Senate Finance Committee and House Ways and Means Committee or meeting with an Internal Revenue Service regulator as guidance is being drafted, he bolsters clients’ credibility by presenting thoughtful recommendations to government officials. Harold can be found on the frontlines of fluid policy conversations representing clients that range in size and sector. He is an invaluable advocate for small businesses navigating the Paycheck Protection Program and isactively engaging tax-writers in Congress and the administration as renewable energy incentives are determined.
Mark Warren | Shareholder
202-747-0515 | mewarren@jbhfs.com
Mark Warren is a well-respected professional on the Hill, having spent more than two decades serving as congressional tax counsel spanning four administrations. Most recently, Mark served as chief tax counsel to the Senate Finance Committee, where he was responsible for the development and implementation of Chairman Chuck Grassley’s (R-IA) tax agenda, including advising on all aspects of federal tax, retirement, pensions and tax-administration policy. He also managed the committee’s COVID-19 tax and pension relief legislation, including the historic Families First Coronavirus Response Act, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, and the COVID-19 tax relief included the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021. Prior, Mark was senior tax counsel in the office of Sen. John Thune (R-SD), where he contributed to the development and drafting of key parts of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA). Mark also spent four years working as tax counsel to the House Ways and Means Committee under committee chairs Dave Camp (R-MI), Paul Ryan (R-WI) and Kevin Brady (R-TX). Earlier, Mark served as deputy assistant secretary for the Department of the Treasury, Office of Legislative Affairs in the administration of President George W. Bush. In addition to his public service, Mark spent two years as vice president for tax and finance at the Retail Industry Leaders Association and practiced law in New York and Washington, D.C.
Mark started his career on Capitol Hill in 1995 as tax counsel to the House Small Business Committee and later to the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, and he has served as an adjunct professor at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business.
Travis Norton | Shareholder
202-872-5287 | tnorton@bhfs.com
Travis develops and executes integrated strategies for clients across the financial services industry—from lobbying Congress to drafting regulatory comment letters to facilitating West Wing meetings. Having served as general counsel to the House Judiciary and Financial Services committees and as staff director to Sen. Tim Scott’s (R-SC) Senate Banking subcommittee, Travis’s technical mastery of process and policy drives success. Clients rely on Travis’s knowledge of people and politics at agencies such as the Treasury Department, Federal Reserve Board, Securities and Exchange Commission and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Having led congressional investigations, Travis now guides companies through the oversight process, including preparing C-suite executives’ testimony before congressional panels. Beyond financial services, he has significant experience in international trade and data privacy. Travis began his career as a secured www.bhfs.com | 6
lending attorney at a large national law firm and recently served as executive director at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Center for Capital Markets Competitiveness.
Katelynn Bradley | Shareholder
Katelynn Bradley’s practice covers the waterfront of regulatory, legislative and legal issues that clients in the financial services and capital markets industry face in Washington, ensuring they strike the right balance between capital formation and investor protection. She provides sharp counsel and strategic policy advice to companies as they engage Congress and federal agencies, drawing on her experience drafting—and making legal challenges to—federal policy during her work for the House Financial Services Committee, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and a leading nonpartisan watchdog organization.
As the federal government continues to establish new environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) standards, Katelynn provides a competitive advantage to clients by keeping them informed of new regulatory disclosure requirements and ESG legislation on the horizon, and she positions companies as a resource to policymakers leading the charge on ESG-related initiatives such as diversity and inclusion.
Most recently, Katelynn served as the director of investor and capital markets policy for the House Financial Services Committee. She leveraged her technical command of U.S. law and understanding of industry needs to advise members of Congress on over two dozen bills addressing capital markets, securities and investment issues that have been signed into law.
Rosemary Becchi | Strategic Advisor and Councel
Rosemary Becchi interprets complex tax and financial services’ regulations as they move through Washington, D.C. in real-time and advocates before agency officials at Treasury, the IRS, the SEC, and the Federal Reserve to affect outcomes. She has an unmatched ability to dig down into the technical aspects of the U.S. tax code to determine the sometimes unintended impacts of both existing law and proposed rulemaking on her clients. Rosemary uses her deep knowledge of the regulatory process to identify solutions, from asking for a private letter ruling to encouraging broad agency guidance to leveraging her bipartisan relationships with the House and Senate tax-writing committees to weigh in with agency officials clarifying original intent.
Rosemary began her government career at the IRS as an attorney and advisor before serving as tax counsel to the majority staff of the Senate Finance Committee. She also held in-house executive positions: Rosemary served as vice president of federal government relations at Citigroup and established the government relations office at Fidelity Investments. www.bhfs.com | 7
In her spare time, Rosemary serves as president of Jersey 1st, a grassroots organization dedicated to raising awareness of the social and economic impact of over-taxation and over-regulation on New Jersey families and businesses.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Please do not hesitate to contact Joe Jarabek
at (614) 323-9390 or jarabek@jarabekandco.com