George Callas

George Callas leads the Public Finance team at Arnold Ventures, where he aims to further develop the evidence and analysis needed to drive tax, fiscal, and budget policies to ensure a more equitable public finance system that is both sustainable and provides an adequate safety net without burdening future generations with debt.

In his most recent role at Steptoe & Johnson LLP, George advised some of the world’s largest corporations on tax policy matters, helping them navigate the complexity of tax reform legislation. Prior to that, he served for 15 years on Capitol Hill, primarily as a senior tax counsel in the U.S. House of Representatives — both for the Ways and Means Committee and to former Speaker Paul D. Ryan. He also served as counsel for the House Budget Committee and as legislative director for a U.S. Senator. In these roles, George developed a reputation for working across the aisle to shepherd bipartisan reforms through a divided government, providing him not only strong bipartisan relationships but also unique insights into the legislative process and the procedure and hard work needed to transform data and evidence into real-world policy change. George started his professional career in the Tax Legislative and Regulatory practice at KPMG LLP.

Since leaving the Hill, George has appeared frequently in national news publications such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post, commenting on major tax and fiscal policy issues of the day. He also has published commentary in tax and legal publications such as Tax Notes and Law360. George earned his bachelor’s, law degree, and LLM in taxation from the University of Florida, where he also served as senior managing editor for the school’s scholarly legal publication, the Florida Journal of International Law.