Two things are certain in life, death and taxes.Benjamin Franklin
Well Ben, you are right about life and taxes, but you are not correct about death and taxes. If you die in 2010 no matter how big a nest egg you have accumulated there is no estate tax. Nada. And your heirs will receive all of your wealth tax-free.
The fact that so few actually pay the tax and the few that do are the wealthiest among us is what makes the estate tax a great tax. So it is a disgrace that our incompetent and corrupt Congress has allowed this tax to fade away for the year 2010. Especially when you tie that fact to the enormous fiscal deficit spending of the Federal government on unnecessary foreign occupations, misguided bank bailouts, needed assistance for the unemployed and spending to stimulate the domestic economy.
If Warren Buffett were to die this year with an estimated net worth of say $37 billion (his estimated net worth in 2009), his estate would escape about $19 billion in taxes. That is about the same amount as the entire BP oil disaster fund. Do you think it would really matter to his heirs that instead of inheriting say $5 billion they only received $2.5 billion? If it does matter to them, too bad. You would have to spend over $33 million dollars a year or over $90,000 a day over the course of your life (for 75 years) in order to use up an inheritance of $2.5 billion. Do you see why the estate tax is the best tax ever devised by man? And on top of all this, the people who pay the tax are dead so they can’t even complain.
Senators Sanders, Harkin and Whitehouse have introduced the Responsible Estate Tax Act and are looking for cosponsors of the legislation. 99.75% of all estates would be exempt from the tax. That means 99.75% of us would not be effected in any way by re-instituting this tax.
A letter to their colleagues in the Senate is below. Please contact your Senators’ offices asking for their co-sponsorship. Here is how:
Urge Your Senators to Co-Sponsor The Responsible Estate Tax Act, S.3533
Dear Friend of United for a Fair Economy,
Senators Sanders (I-VT), Harkin (D-IA), and Whitehouse (D-RI) have just proposed a strong, fair, and fiscally responsible estate tax bill. The Responsible Estate Tax Act (outlined below) would make the wealthy pay their fair share, while ensuring that the estate tax will not affect the middle class, small businesses, or family farmers. Call your Senators now and urge them to co-sponsor the Sanders/Harkin/Whitehouse Responsible Estate Tax Act S.3533 (pdf) so that we can begin the path towards a fairer and more responsible tax system.
1. Call toll-free 800-830-5738 or 202-224-3121 (Capitol switchboard) and ask to be connected to your two US Senators, or call their direct lines. Then, ask for the staff person who handles taxes, or tell the person who answers the phone:
My name is _____________. I am a constituent.
I am calling to urge the Senator to co-sponsor S.3533 the Sanders/Harkin/Whitehouse Responsible Estate Tax Act .
If we are going to get out of this recession, we need to end the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy. It’s time to restore the progressive tax system that made our country strong, beginning with a robust estate tax. The Sanders/Harkin/Whitehouse The Responsible Estate Tax Act is an important step on the road to an economic recovery that benefits all Americans.
This bill is a common sense solution. It balances the desire to protect small businesses and farms with the assurance that the super-wealthy give back and support the country that made their prosperity possible.
Email me, Lee Farris, at lfarris@faireconomy.org to let me know what you heard and how it went. If you get a reply email or a letter from your legislator, please send me a copy.
2. Write a letter to the editor. Find the editor’s email from the Contact the Media box. Use the talking points above and connect your letter to any story about taxes or deficits. Please send me a copy of the letter you submit.
3. Share this alert with everyone you know. Please forward this email, post it on blogs, Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, and everywhere else you communicate.
Thanks for taking action,
Lee Farris Senior Organizer on Estate Tax Policy United for a Fair Economy 617-423-2148 x133 lfarris@faireconomy.org
Just to be clear – if Congress does absolutely NOTHING, the Estate Tax WILL be reinstituted next year to the 2001, $1,000,000 exclusion. The legislation will raise that level to the 2009 limit of $3,500,000. If you don’t want it raised – do nothing! (Personally, I think it should be raised to $2,000,000 – the same as the Washington State exclusion.)
The tax rates will be higher under this legislation on lower estate values than 2001 law which would, along with the “billionaire’s surtax”, offset to some degree the loss of revenue from the higher exclusion amount. How the tax revenue from the old law versus the proposed law would actually compare is unknown by me.
This legislation is a preemptive strike against making the 2010 law of no estate tax permanent which the Walmart family is desperately trying to accomplish.
Just to be clear – if Congress does absolutely NOTHING, the Estate Tax WILL be reinstituted next year to the 2001, $1,000,000 exclusion. The legislation will raise that level to the 2009 limit of $3,500,000. If you don’t want it raised – do nothing! (Personally, I think it should be raised to $2,000,000 – the same as the Washington State exclusion.)
The tax rates will be higher under this legislation on lower estate values than 2001 law which would, along with the “billionaire’s surtax”, offset to some degree the loss of revenue from the higher exclusion amount. How the tax revenue from the old law versus the proposed law would actually compare is unknown by me.
This legislation is a preemptive strike against making the 2010 law of no estate tax permanent which the Walmart family is desperately trying to accomplish.