The hosts of CNBC's “Squawk Box” spoke with Bharat Ramamurti, an informal economic adviser to the Biden-Harris campaign. Taxing unrealized capital gains; The hosts argued that this was likely “unfair” and “unconstitutional.”
Hosts Rebecca Quick and Joe Curnen questioned Rama about the proposal, with Quick saying he thought it was unreasonable because it would “advance taxes that you would pay later when you sell your stock.”
Reports From the Wall Street Journal The New York Times reports that Harris supports tax increases proposed by Biden in his recent budget proposal, which Harris' campaign said include a 25% tax on unrealized capital gains for individuals with assets of more than $100 million and raising the corporate tax rate from 21% to 28%.
“I find this reaction to unrealised gains a little odd because I think the majority of people watching this programme right now are already paying tax on unrealised gains. It's called a wealth tax,” Ramamurthy told the hosts.
CNBC's Joe Curnen and Rebecca Quick questioned Bharat Ramamurthy on Wednesday about Harris' economic proposals. (Screenshot/CNBC)
'Insanity': Economists slam Biden-Harris proposal to tax unrealized investment gains
Quick and Kernen quickly disagreed, pointing out that property taxes are a “use tax” because they are used to support schools.
Ramamurthy argued that if the value of a home increases, people will end up paying higher taxes even if they choose not to sell their home.
“The value of your home never moves like a stock price. It never moves like something you don't sell. And property taxes are a use tax. You pay for schools. You pay for emergency services. These things make perfect sense,” Quick retorted.
Ramamurthy argued that Harris' plan and the revenue from the unrealized gains tax would create more opportunity for Americans.
US Vice President and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris and Democratic vice presidential nominee Minnesota Governor Tim Walz celebrate on the final day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, on August 22, 2024. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
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“This is not a use tax on the people who actually use the services,” Quick said.
“It's probably unconstitutional,” Kernen added, joking that it wouldn't happen in Quick's lifetime.
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Overall, the unrealized gains tax and large capital gains tax increases are projected to bring in about $800 billion in new government revenue, according to an analysis by the Peter G. Peterson Foundation.
Fox News' Kristen Altas contributed to this report.
