Legislation Counsel / Staff Accountant

Joint Committee attorneys and accountants are involved in every aspect of the tax legislative process. They work closely with the staffs of the two tax-writing committees, the House Ways and Means Committee and the Senate Finance Committee, to design and implement federal tax legislation, and they serve as an important resource to members of Congress and their staffs on present law and policy alternatives. The particular responsibilities of a Legislation Counsel and a Staff Accountant, and the qualifications necessary for those positions, are described more specifically below.

A Legislation Counsel or Staff Accountant is expected to develop expertise in one or more substantive areas of the tax law and to undertake the following responsibilities within those areas:

1. Prepare pamphlets, testimony and other written materials to serve as background for congressional hearings or to provide general information and analysis on matters of federal tax policy. This work typically requires extensive research and analysis with regard to present law, issues raised by present law, and alternative legislative solutions. The work also requires an ability to understand and integrate economic concepts (as developed by Joint Committee economists) in written materials;
2. Work with Members, the tax-writing committees and their staffs to develop tax legislative proposals, by providing technical assistance, suggesting alternatives and drafting technical explanations or other descriptions of the proposals;
3. Work closely with House and Senate legislative counsel to draft proposed tax legislation;
4. Draft detailed mark-up documents to be used as the basis for consideration of tax legislation by the House and Senate tax-writing committees;
5. Provide technical assistance to tax-writing committees, Members and their staffs during committee mark-ups of tax legislation;
6. Draft committee reports for tax legislation passed by the House or Senate tax-writing committees or by a House-Senate conference committee;
7. Draft technical explanations of bills for which no formal committee report has been produced;
8. Work closely with Joint Committee economists to analyze the behavioral and tax revenue implications of proposed changes in the federal tax laws, including in the revenue estimation process;
9. Assist with or conduct investigations either pursuant to legislation or at the request of a Member or other Congressional committee;
10. Represent the Joint Committee in meetings with the private sector, including professional conferences;
11. Monitor commercial and financial news relevant to his or her substantive areas of responsibility, and academic and practitioner articles or reports relevant to those areas: and
12. Monitor regulatory and other administrative developments in his or her substantive areas of responsibility in order to inform the analysis of legislative proposals and to ensure that the positions taken by the Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service are consistent with the legislative intent of Congress.

A Legislation Counsel or Staff Accountant may have additional responsibilities, depending on his or her particular areas of expertise. These may include, for example, assisting the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in its consideration of tax treaties or working with the Internal Revenue Service to review proposed tax refunds in excess of $2 million (in accordance with Code section 6405).

To fulfill these responsibilities, a Legislation Counsel or Staff Accountant must have excellent written communication, oral communication, analytic, and interpersonal skills. He or she must be able to work efficiently in an open office environment under tight deadlines and with minimal supervision. In addition, a Legislation Counsel or Staff Accountant must be proactive, creative, and possess imaginative problem solving skills. A Legislation Counsel or Staff Accountant must be able to treat all Members as clients, and to put aside any personal policy preferences in the service of the policy goals of a Member or a tax-writing committee.

Qualifications. For the position of Legislation Counsel or Staff Accountant, the Joint Committee generally hires attorneys or accountants, as applicable, with a strong academic record and four or more years of federal tax experience, either with a private law or accounting firm or in a federal government tax position. For lawyers and accountants from the private sector, large firm experience is preferred. In evaluating candidates for employment, the Joint Committee looks for individuals who express willingness to work at the Joint Committee for two and a half years or more. This preference, however, does not change in any respect the employment-at-will status of Joint Committee employees.

Because the Joint Committee Staff is nonpartisan and assists both the majority and minority parties in the House and Senate, Joint Committee attorneys, accountants and other professionals must be able to maintain strict confidentiality regarding the matters on which they are engaged.

Salary range: Salary is competitive and commensurate with experience.

How to apply: Applicants should send a resume by electronic mail to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Macroeconomist

The Joint Committee on Taxation is seeking an experienced macroeconomist to assist in the development and implementation of macroeconomic analysis of major tax legislation.

Candidates must have a Ph.D. or equivalent. Special consideration will be given to candidates who have built and used dynamic general equilibrium models. Excellent quantitative and analytic skills, writing ability, and interpersonal skills required. The ability to communicate technical material in a clear manner to noneconomists is a plus. Candidates must be able to work efficiently under tight deadlines and with minimal supervision.

Salary range: Salary is competitive and commensurate with experience.

How to apply: Applicants should send a resume by electronic mail to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Economist -- Revenue Analysis

The Joint Committee on Taxation is seeking an economist to assist in formulating estimates of the Federal budget impact of proposed Federal tax legislation and analyzing the possible economic and administrative implications of proposed changes in the Federal tax laws.

Minimum qualifications include a Ph.D. (or equivalent) with training in public finance and taxation. Excellent quantitative and analytic skills, writing ability, and interpersonal skills required. The ability to communicate technical material in a clear manner to noneconomists is a plus. Candidates must be able to work efficiently under tight deadlines and with minimal supervision.

Salary range: Salary is competitive and commensurate with experience.

How to apply: Applicants should send a resume by electronic mail to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .