Tax Reform: The Insiders’ View

About the Speakers

Russ Sullivan is the chair of Brownstein’s National Tax Policy Group, a veteran of Capitol Hill who served for nearly a decade as Senate Finance Committee staff director, and a creative strategist who finds legislative and regulatory solutions that save clients’ money.

Russ is one of the top tax attorneys and advocates in the country. When companies face risks in Washington, D.C., they turn to Russ to develop creative solutions that save their industry. For Fortune 50 companies, startups, and national trade associations alike, Russ translates federal policy and the U.S. tax code for clients’ boards and members and identifies untapped opportunities. He provides clients with clarity when they need it most, offers critical information for developing smart business strategies, and engages the Treasury Department and tax-writing committees on Capitol Hill to advance clients’ domestic and international tax priorities.

In addition to advocating on tax policy, Russ represents clients’ interests on health care, pension planning, trade, energy, financial services, and economic development policies. He worked firsthand on many of these issues during his 14 years of service on the Senate Finance Committee. During his time in Congress, Russ saw some of the most important issues within the business community come before the committee and helped draft landmark legislation such as the 2001 tax legislation, the 2005 and 2007 Energy Policy Acts, and the Affordable Care Act. Russ leverages these expertises to provide clients with contextual insight into current tax and health care policy debates.

Russ is passionate about fostering at-risk youth. He has served as legal guardian for 22 teenagers, and has continually fought for an increase in the adoption tax credit. He proudly serves on the board of directors for the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute.

Harold Hancock is fluent in the language of tax legislators and regulators, a trusted counsel to companies navigating legal implications of U.S. policy, and has served under three different House Ways and Means Committee chairs.

Harold offers technical tax advice for planning transactions and investments, and he resolves complex policy and regulatory issues by engaging key officials in Congress, the Treasury Department, and the White House. As former counsel to three House Ways and Means Committee chairs, including incumbent Ranking Member Kevin Brady (R-TX), Harold identifies and secures vital tax credits, deductions, and exemptions for domestic and international corporations.

With a deep understanding of the U.S. tax code, Harold’s value lies in his ability to develop creative and credible policy solutions that address his clients’ needs. He then distills those proposals into messaging policymakers and regulators find compelling while also leveraging his personal relationships across Washington, D.C. to reach key decision-makers. Whether Harold is advocating for a tax policy before members on the Senate Finance Committee and House Ways and Means Committee or meeting with an Internal Revenue Service regulator as guidance is being drafted, he bolsters clients’ credibility by presenting thoughtful recommendations to government officials. Harold can be found on the frontlines of fluid policy conversations representing clients that range in size and sector. He is an invaluable advocate for small businesses navigating the Paycheck Protection Program and is actively engaging tax-writers in Congress and the administration as renewable energy incentives are determined.

Mark Warren worked on every major tax-policy debate since the Clinton administration, and has senior leadership experience in both chambers of Congress and at the Treasury Department.

Mark is a well-respected professional on the Hill, having spent more than two decades serving as congressional tax counsel spanning four administrations. Most recently, Mark served as chief tax counsel to the Senate Finance Committee, where he was responsible for the development and implementation of Chairman Chuck Grassley’s (R-IA) tax agenda, including advising on all aspects of federal tax, retirement, pensions and tax-administration policy. He also managed the committee’s COVID-19 tax and pension relief legislation, including the historic Families First Coronavirus Response Act; the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, and the COVID-19 tax relief included in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021.

Prior, Mark was senior tax counsel in the office of Sen. John Thune (R-SD), where he contributed to the development and drafting of key parts of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA). Mark also spent four years working as tax counsel to the House Ways and Means Committee under committee chairs Dave Camp (R-MI), Paul Ryan (R-WI) and Kevin Brady (R-TX).

Earlier, Mark served as deputy assistant secretary for the Department of the Treasury, Office of Legislative Affairs in the administration of President George W. Bush. In addition to his public service, Mark spent two years as vice president for tax and finance at the Retail Industry Leaders Association and practiced law in New York and Washington, D.C.

Mark started his career on Capitol Hill in 1995 as tax counsel to the House Small Business Committee and later to the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, and he has served as an adjunct professor at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business.

Chicago Chapter Planned Giving Committee
Co-Chairs: Kenneth M. Bloom and Lindsey Paige Markus
Alan S. Alport, Brian Carter, Avi Davidoff, Charles E. Dobrusin, Galia Felemovicius, Steven A. Felsenthal, Mark Gaines, David A. Handler, Frank Hirsch, Gary E. Hirschberg, Andrew S. Jacobs, Martin J. Kanter, Kenneth F. Lorch, Judith H. Meguire, Michael Patterson, Marc Pershan, Michael S. Pinsky, Julie S. Pleshivoy, David M. Rappaport, Lawrence I. Richman, Robert A. Romanoff, Joel S. Rothman, Edwin B. Ruthman, Joel W. Schwartz, Michael R. Shelist, Stacy E. Singer, Richard A. Sugar, Fredrick B. Weber, Mark R. Winick

American Technion Society – Chicago
President: Michael Pierce
Chairman: David M. Rappaport
Director of Leadership Giving and Sr. Advisor, Technion Centennial Campaign: Joy P. Leff

Please contact Joy Leff at 312.553.2222 or technion.chicago@ats.org for more information.