WaPo trying to make controversy over mere tax deferral:
Section 1043 sales are similar to like-kind exchanges, a concept familiar to real estate investors, and is even reported on the same tax form, Form 8824. Eventually, the employee will pay tax when the replacement property is sold. Some argue that simply holding the assets until death would eliminate the income tax via the stepped-up-basis regime. That’s certainly true, currently, but could change depending on future tax reform. In the meantime, the employee has been able to diversify his portfolio without income tax consequence. Several senators have taken exception to this tax-free diversification by proposing the “No Windfalls for Government Service Act,” which would limit to $1 million the amount of capital gains that can be deferred under Section 1043. One can debate the politics of Section 1043, but be sure to call it what it is: tax deferral.
