Fostering Sound & Durable Tax Policy: The Vital Role of Business

Continental Breakfast and Registration

Welcome Remarks and Recognition of Symposium Mission

-- Sharon Heck, Corporate Vice President Finance and Chief Tax Officer, Intel Corporation
-- Lyn Walker, Executive Director and General Counsel, TCPI
-- Ken Kuykendall, US Tax Leader and Tax Consulting Leader, PwC

Keynote Address

The symposium will begin with a keynote address by World Bank Chief Economist Indermit Gill providing a global view of the world economy and what lies ahead, including the fiscal challenges governments and multilateral organizations face.

Introduction by Pam Olson, Consultant, Tax Policy Services, PwC

Current State of the Economy

Following the keynote address, a session led by TCPI Pillar of Excellence award winner Dr. Martin Sullivan will take a close look at the current state of the US economy, the federal budget, both spending categories and tax bases, as well as the economic and budgetary challenges ahead.

Facilitated by Hank Gutman, Of Counsel, Ivins, Phillips & Barker

Role of Fiscal & Monetary Policy in Addressing Economic Issues

Former Chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisors, Prof. Jason Furman, and the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago's EVP and Director of Research Anna Paulson will join us for a discussion of the roles and limitations of fiscal and monetary policy in addressing economic conditions, the speed with which their impact is felt, and interactions between the two, including the potential for duplication or inconsistent actions.

Moderator:
Paul Nolan, Vice President – Tax, Government Affairs & Strategic Real Estate, McCormick & Company, Inc.
Panelist:
Jason Furman, Aetna Professor of the Practice of Economic Policy, Harvard Kennedy School
Anna Paulson, Executive Vice President, Director of Research and Executive Committee Member, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago

What Does Economics Tell Us About the Optimal Design of a Tax System?

Economic principles support designing a tax system that fosters economic growth by minimizing market distortions and the impact on decisions to work, save, and invest. The US tax system relies heavily on income taxes, including the corporate income tax, which the OECD has characterized as the worst form of tax because of its adverse impact on economic growth, and little on consumption taxes, which are widely viewed as a more efficient form of taxation. In addition to raising revenue, tax systems serve many other purposes: redistributing income, incentivizing certain activities, and discouraging others. This session will explore the economic efficiency of the current US tax system and alternatives to it.

Moderator:
Diane Swonk, Chief Economist, KPMG
Panelists:
Thornton Matheson, Technical Assistance Advisor, International Monetary Fund
Shuting Pomerleau, Research Manager, Climate Policy, Niskanen Center
Karl Russo, Principal, National Economics and Statistics Leader, PwC

Break

Fiscal Solutions & Available Tools

Economists and budget experts generally agree that the US fiscal trajectory is unsustainable and that some combination of spending cuts and revenue increases is inevitable. This session will provide an in-depth discussion of fiscal solutions and available tools to put the federal budget on a sustainable path.

Moderator:
Teri Wielenga, Vice President, Global Head of Tax Policy, Gilead Sciences, Inc.
Panelists:
Marc Goldwein, Senior Vice President and Senior Policy Director, Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget
Erica York, Senior Economist, Research Manager, Tax Foundation

Addressing the Political Challenges Presented by the Policy Options

Among the challenges to a sustainable budget path are fundamental political disagreements about how revenues should be raised and from whom. Over time, the tax system has grown increasingly progressive with more individuals removed from the tax rolls altogether and the US Treasury relying on borrowing to meet funding needs. This session will discuss the political challenges to addressing our budgetary needs and how to build consensus for sound tax policy options.

Moderator:
Mary Duffy, Managing Director, Andersen
Panelists:
George Callas, Executive Vice President of Public Finance, Arnold Ventures
Michael Graetz, Columbia Alumni Professor Emeritus of Tax Law, Columbia Law School
Ross Kearney, Corporate Vice President, Tax, Raytheon Technologies
Anna Taylor, Deputy Managing Principal – Tax Policy Group, Washington National Tax, Deloitte Tax

Luncheon and Presentation of TCPI Pillar of Excellence Award

2023 Pillar of Excellence Award Recipient: Bob Stack, Managing Director, International Tax Group, Washington National Tax, Deloitte Tax

Bridging the Trust Gap: Business, Policymakers, and the Public

In response to calls for greater transparency about environmental and sustainability risks, ESG reporting in one form or another is being more widely-adopted. This panel will consider whether ESG tax reporting can be used to inform the public, media, and policymakers, and whether greater transparency is a potential solution to bridging the trust gap. The CEO of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), Eelco van der Enden, will describe the work of GRI in setting uniform standards for business reporting, the uses of the GRI standards, and their future.

Moderator:
Will Morris, Deputy Global Tax Policy Leader, PwC
Panelist:
Michelle Edkins, Managing Director, Investment Stewardship, Blackrock
Eelco van der Enden, CEO, Global Reporting Initiative

ESG Reporting: Tax Transparency Options and Results

Whether attributed to ESG-related concerns, tax administration, or simply providing investors with better information, all roads seem to lead to greater transparency with respect to taxes paid by business with a focus on income or profits taxes. Missing from the picture is the role of business beyond income tax in paying, collecting, and reporting taxes and related information to governments at all levels. This panel of tax professionals will discuss their experiences with addressing tax transparency-related measures in recent years and how that may inform their approach to what is on the horizon.

Moderator:
Diana McCutchen, Partner, Business Tax Services, Deloitte Tax
Panelists:
Tadd Fowler, Senior Vice President – Treasurer and Global Tax Operations, Procter & Gamble
Sharon Heck, Chief Tax Officer, Intel Corporation
Mark Volpe, Senior Vice President, Tax, Regeneron
Brett Weaver, Tax ESG Leader, KPMG

Break

Building a Better Mousetrap: Future of Cross-Border Dispute Resolution

Despite the promise of more effective and efficient intergovernmental dispute resolution, intractable cross-border disputes are on the rise. The “certainty” promised by the OECD is highly restricted and turns on a cumbersome procedure. This session will consider what would make for an effective cross-border dispute resolution system and what business can do to respond to the increased risk of competing claims of jurisdiction to tax cross-border profits.

Moderator:
Loren Ponds, Member; Practice Co-Lead, Tax Policy, Miller & Chevalier
Panelists:
Jennifer Best, Acting Deputy Commissioner (Large Business & International), Internal Revenue Service
Michael McDonald, Managing Director, Transfer Pricing Services, National Tax Department, EY
Danielle Smith, Leader, Tax Risk Management & Tax Controversy, PwC

How Will Recent Investments Make Tax Administration More Efficient and Effective?

The Biden Administration called for significant increases in IRS funding and Congress delivered $80 billion in the Inflation Reduction Act to be used for a variety of purposes including enforcement, operations support, business systems modernization and taxpayer services. This panel of current and former government and private sector professionals will explore the associated Treasury and IRS operational plan that (by the time of this panel) will have been submitted to Congress and share their views both on its expected impact as well as additional items not included in the plan that may warrant consideration.

Moderator:
Armando Gomez, Partner, Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom
Panelists:
Nikole Flax, Commissioner, Large Business and International Division, Internal Revenue Service
Natalie Rorem, Vice President, Tax, The Boeing Company
Natasha Sarin, Associate Professor of Law, Yale Law School

Networking Reception

Continental Breakfast

Welcome Back

Interview with Manal Corwin, Director of the OECD CTPA

Facilitated by Bob Stack, Managing Director, International Tax Group, Washington National Tax, Deloitte Tax

Future of Global Tax Policy: Pillars One and Two - From Agreement to Implementation?

With the EU’s passage of a Pillar Two Directive and more countries expected to follow suit in 2023, expectations are high that Pillar Two soon will be implemented by a critical mass of governments. While the likelihood of a multilateral approach to Pillar One is much less certain, that means a risk of the return of DSTs and other unilateral measures. That also means a heightened expectation that aspects of Pillar One will find their way on a unilateral basis into some local countries' tax laws or enforcement efforts. This panel will explore some of the unanswered questions and practical implications associated with the implementation of Pillars One and Two.

Moderator:
Pat Brown, Washington National Tax Services Co-Leader, PwC
Panelists:
Stephen Bonovich, Vice President, Tax, Agilent Technologies
Alyson Lawrence, Vice President, Global Taxation, Johnson & Johnson
Caroline Ngo, Partner, McDermott Will & Emery
Kevin Nichols, Head of Tax ESG, Tax Communications, and Tax Policy, Uber

Change is Inevitable: What Will Follow Pillars One and Two?

In a rapidly evolving business and economic environment and with some governments already expressing dissatisfaction with the details of Pillar One and Two, the OECD agreement may have a short shelf life. This session will explore what may come next as governments face continued and growing political, economic, and budgetary challenges that may require additional revenue.

Moderator:
Barbara Angus, Global Tax Policy Leader, EY
Panelists:
Tim Berger, Senior Vice President-Global Head of Tax, Zoetis
Tom Roesser, Tax Policy Counsel, Microsoft
Daniel Smith, Director, International Tax Planning & Policy, Google

Break

What’s the Likely Future of US Tax Policy?

This session will consider what recent legislative, administrative, and judicial developments may suggest about the future of US tax policy. Topics will include recent guidance implementing the book minimum tax and other 2022 legislation, tax proposals in the Biden administration’s FY 2024 budget, whether use of financial statements in the book minimum tax and OECD Pillar One and Two agreement portend a shift in tax policy design, and the impact of myriad expiring provisions in 2025.

Moderator:
Wade Sutton, Principal, PwC
Panelists:
Michelle Hanlon, Howard W. Johnson Professor and Professor of Accounting, MIT Sloan School of Management
John Stowell, Senior Vice President – Tax, Incentives & International Financial Reporting, The Walt Disney Company
Russ Sullivan, Shareholder, Brownstein Hyatt Farber & Schreck
Lisa Zarlenga, Partner and Chair of Tax Policy Group, Steptoe & Johnson

Bringing It All Together: Managing Tax in the Current Global Environment

A panel of Tax VPs will discuss key takeaways and the impact on their business as well as steps to develop and carry forward a constructive business agenda.

Moderator:
Chris Miller, Senior Vice President, Tax, T-Mobile
Panelists:
Brandon Baker, Global Tax Director, Koch Capabilities, LLC
Maria Minetti, Chief Tax Officer and Treasurer, CBRE
Kathy Rodes, Vice President, Tax, MASCO Corporation
Urvi Doshi Sood, Vice President, Taxes & General Tax Counsel, Lockheed Martin Corporation

Closing Remarks