Public Has No Right to Know for 50 Years With Senate Redo: Taxes
By Marc Heller and Aaron E. Lorenzo - Jul 25, 2013
Leaders of the tax-code rewrite in Congress pledged to keep ideas submitted by lawmakers secret for 50 years, seeking to assuage concerns that leaks of comments may jeopardize relationships with fundraisers or constituents.
Senate Finance Committee staff promised that submissions on which tax breaks to keep or jettison -- which are due today -- will be marked as confidential and won’t be released until Dec. 31, 2064, according to a July 19 memo to Senate tax aides obtained by Bloomberg BNA.
Congress is working on the biggest rewrite of the tax code since 1986, and big breaks may be on the chopping block. Leaders say they want to start by throwing out all the deductions and making people argue to get them back in. Assuring lawmakers of anonymity will help attract more participation, said Dean Zerbe, a former tax counsel to the committee.
“The intent is to let members be candid,” said Zerbe, now national managing director at Alliantgroup. Keeping many discussions behind closed doors while crafting the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts helped then, he said.
The secrecy contrasts with most records. Senate Historian Don Ritchie said most files automatically open after 20 years, and some can be sealed for 50 years to protect personal privacy, national security, or the confidentiality of a congressional investigation. The records of Senator Joe McCarthy’s secret hearings were opened in 2003, 50 years after they were held, he said. A committee chairman can interpret “investigation” to cover the examination of legislation, he said.
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http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-07-26/public-has-no-right-to-know-for-50-years-with-senate-redo-taxes.html
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