The Supreme Court in a decision Thursday did not foreclose the kind of wealth tax some congressional Democrats have proposed, but justices left plenty of clues that they were not exactly leaving the door open to one either.
A couple who challenged part of a 2017 tax law and conservative organizations who supported them had argued that allowing the provision to stand would effectively sign off on a wealth tax, since part of the case hinged on whether income had to be “realized” to be taxed.
But in the majority opinion, Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh dodged the realization issue and wrote multiple times that the court would not wade into whether Congress could tax the accumulated wealth of individuals or unrealized income, such as appreciation in the value of unsold stocks.
