Edward Tanenbaum The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) continues its scrutiny of the favourable tax treatment afforded to hedge funds and private equity firms. In recent months, Congress has responded to the IRS's concern that hedge funds and private equity firms – and their managers – are paying tax at lower rates than corporations and most individuals. First, House Democrats introduced bills that would impose corporate-level tax on publicly traded partnerships (PTPs) that derive income from investment adviser or asset management services; under current law, certain PTPs with predominantly passive-type income are taxed only once, at the partner level. Congress is also concerned that the managers of hedge funds and private equity firms are able to receive their compensation through partnership carried interests, thereby paying tax at the capital gains rate of 15%, rather than the maximum ordinary rate of 35%.
December 01 2007