SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH – Attorney General Sean D. Reyes joined sixteen other state attorneys general in a letter to President Joseph R. Biden over his plan to “tax certain unrealized capital gains.” The letter, which was led by the State of West Virginia, urges the president to reverse course on this policy decision.
In their letter, the attorneys general argue that the president’s idea “will discourage investment… [and] economic growth, and would set a shaky principle for taxation moving forward” due to the federal government’s tendencies to exploit and augment new tax categories.
The coalition of States also highlight skepticism over the constitutionality of the president’s proposal, warning that the Supreme Court is about to issue its opinion on Moore v. United States, which is “a case considering whether the Sixteenth Amendment authorizes Congress to tax unrealized sums without apportionment among the states.”
As the attorneys general conclude their letter, they urge the president “to show some restraint, stop the abuse, and abandon this flawed new tax,” adding “Of all the powers conferred upon government[,] that of taxation is most liable to abuse.”
Joining Utah and West Virginia on the letter to the president were the States of Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, and Virginia.
