Estate tax repeal: Another example of a broken record
by Leigh Pomeroy
Are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there yet?
Anyone who has had children knows this familiar refrain from long trips in the family van or SUV.
The estate tax ban propsal is very much the same thing. Like two-year-olds who want something, the proponents of the ban keep coming back again... and again... and again.
You can't blame them. It is to their financial inerests that it be eliminated. For those ultra rich who are most subject to it, it cuts heavily into what they can pass on to their progeny. For those who are in Congress, not to support its repeal cuts heavily into campaign contributions from the individuals mentioned above.
Yes, it does not seem fair that the estate tax takes a huge chunk from potentially passed on wealth. But those who argue against its repeal ask: Just how much money does someone need to live on? If it's inherited wealth, why should someone become rich not because they've done anything but becaue they happened to have been born to the right parents?
And what about the folks who work minimum wage jobs or two or more jobs and earn next to nothing? Shouldn't they receive some tax breaks instead?
For those who have thoroughly studied the estate tax issue, the evidence is clear: We need some sort of estate tax to keep solvency in the government, which does a lot to support the wealthy, and to prevent the establishment of an inherited aristocracy, something our founding fathers fought mightily against and which is inherent to a strong, functioning democracy.
Those who use the estate tax repeal for an election issue often cite misleading "facts". They claim, for example, that it causes the break-up of family farms. Balderdash. There are plenty of provisions within tax law to keep this from happening. And yes, families may have to hire a good accountant to make the best use of the law. But the fact remains that the only family farms that are lost to the estate tax are those that do not properly prepare for passing them along to the next generation.
Business writer Hugh Sloan has written an excellent article on just this subject entitled, "Estate-Tax Repeal Would Hurt the 'Small Rich'." Those seeking the truth on this issue can read it here.
Are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there yet?
Anyone who has had children knows this familiar refrain from long trips in the family van or SUV.
The estate tax ban propsal is very much the same thing. Like two-year-olds who want something, the proponents of the ban keep coming back again... and again... and again.
You can't blame them. It is to their financial inerests that it be eliminated. For those ultra rich who are most subject to it, it cuts heavily into what they can pass on to their progeny. For those who are in Congress, not to support its repeal cuts heavily into campaign contributions from the individuals mentioned above.
Yes, it does not seem fair that the estate tax takes a huge chunk from potentially passed on wealth. But those who argue against its repeal ask: Just how much money does someone need to live on? If it's inherited wealth, why should someone become rich not because they've done anything but becaue they happened to have been born to the right parents?
And what about the folks who work minimum wage jobs or two or more jobs and earn next to nothing? Shouldn't they receive some tax breaks instead?
For those who have thoroughly studied the estate tax issue, the evidence is clear: We need some sort of estate tax to keep solvency in the government, which does a lot to support the wealthy, and to prevent the establishment of an inherited aristocracy, something our founding fathers fought mightily against and which is inherent to a strong, functioning democracy.
Those who use the estate tax repeal for an election issue often cite misleading "facts". They claim, for example, that it causes the break-up of family farms. Balderdash. There are plenty of provisions within tax law to keep this from happening. And yes, families may have to hire a good accountant to make the best use of the law. But the fact remains that the only family farms that are lost to the estate tax are those that do not properly prepare for passing them along to the next generation.
Business writer Hugh Sloan has written an excellent article on just this subject entitled, "Estate-Tax Repeal Would Hurt the 'Small Rich'." Those seeking the truth on this issue can read it here.
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