WASHINGTON — The Senate Finance Committee unanimously recommended the Senate confirm Mark Mazur as the Treasury Department's new assistant secretary for tax policy who would sign off on muni-related and other tax regulatory proposals.
Mazur is currently Treasury's deputy assistant secretary for tax analysis, a position he has held since 2009.
President Obama nominated Mazur for the tax policy position in November. The post has been vacant since May of last year. The committee voted 24-0 for Mazur as well as for several other nominees before Congress left for its Independence Day recess.
"These nominees will fill important roles as we work to tackle the tough economic issues facing our country, simplify our tax code and make the US more competitive abroad," Sen. Max Baucus D-N.D, said in a release. "There are challenges ahead for our economy, and we're depending on strong, sound leadership from these nominees to overcome them."
Mazur, director of research, analysis, and statistics of income for the Internal Revenue Service from 2001 to 2009, would replace Michael Mundaca, who left the Treasury Department in May of 2011.
Emily McMahon has served as acting assistant secretary for tax policy in recent months. Under the Clinton Administration, Mazur was a senior director to the National Economic Council from 1995 to 1997 and a senior economist at the Council of Economic Advisors from 1993 to 1995.
He worked at the Department of Energy as the acting administrator of the Energy Information Administration from 2000 to 2001, and was director of the DOE's Office of Policy and Chief Economist from 1999 to 2000.
Mazur has master's and doctorate degrees from Stanford University and a bachelor's degree in financial administration from Michigan State University.
At his confirmation hearing in May, Mazur told the committee that the Treasury is not currently developing a comprehensive plan for tax reform but rather is only in the "early stages of developing public support" for it. He also said tax reform will be more difficult than it was in 1986 when it was supposed to be revenue neutral.
