Posted on 02/08/2006 5:07:55 PM PST by voletti
The President aims to end estate taxes for the wealthiest Americans. He also wants to scrap a $255 death benefit for the poorest The contrast in President Bush's new budget could not be more stark. On one hand, he wants to eliminate what he likes to call the "death tax" -- a levy imposed on a handful of the nation's biggest estates. On the other, he wants to end Social Security's lump sum death benefit -- a $255 check that the families of many of the nation's poorest use to help pay for their funerals.
There is a lot more in Bush's $2.77 trillion budget than that, of course. He'd boost spending for homeland security and the Pentagon, trim many popular domestic programs, and control the growth of Medicare by boosting premiums for high-income seniors and freezing or cutting payments for health providers, such as doctors, hospitals, and hospices. At the same time, the President asked Congress to make most of his first-term tax cuts permanent.
ESTATE PLANNING. That includes permanently eliminating the estate tax, or what conservatives like to call the death tax. Like most of what happens these days in the tax world, the story is complicated, but it goes like this: Starting in 2001, Congress began to gradually increase the size of an estate that would be exempt from tax. By 2009, estates of $3.5 million or less ($7 million for a couple that does the smallest bit of planning), would be tax-free. By 2010 all estates would be exempt from the tax, but only for one year.
So President Bush wants to permanently free all estates from the tax starting in 2011. The estimated annual cost: in excess of $50 billion in 2012, rising to more than $70 billion by 2016.
(Excerpt) Read more at businessweek.com ...
OK.
A barf alert is in order here, perhaps.
Don't let the name fool you B'week is as liberal as The Village Voice.
Fair Tax Ping!
"The Death Tax only effects the uber-super-duper rich....." (parroted by nearly every demonrat in washington)
Yeah, exactly like death only effects the living (well).
Estate taxes kill family businesses, by forced liquidation of assets at fire sale prices, to pay the pigs in washington.
but will also eliminate all federal taxes.It does not "eliminate all federal taxes". It's a federal tax that replaces a few and taxes the rest.
The only reason the government got an extra $9K from me last year was because they lowered the capital gains tax.
I sat on some land for 20 years with no reason to sell because of the high tax. They dropped the tax rate and i figured it was time to sell. That caused the government to pocket $9K with no work or investment on it's part.
Gee, funny how that worked.
How can you justify paying a benefit to everyone by saying it is important to the very poor? It is the grasp of the middle income people for poverty benefits that kills the budget.
The fairtax does not eliminate all federal taxes dufus.
..and Fair Tax is a consummate oxymoron too.
$255 would not pay for much of a funeral. It is an archaic benefit that mostly just confuses people. Even the poorest could afford a tiny $5k term life policy, please!
The FairTax replaces the method of tax collection. Instead of basing the individual's tax burden on income and a collection of other highly selective events as we have now, it bases the individual's tax burden on expenditures.
OKAY?!?
In any case, I'm glad Bush is trying to ax the evil death tax.
This must be a misprint. They MUST meant to have said "The estimated savings to American taxpayers would be in excess of $50 billion......" ;-)
The Fairtax plan does NOT eliminate all federal taxes. The Fairtax plan "replaces" some federal taxes with a NEW federal tax then taxes the ones it did not replace (including itself).
Well, OK, let's be more specific even though the people would have the information if they visited the FairTax website.
The FairTax eliminates income taxes, payroll taxes, estate taxes and gift taxes in addition to eliminating the IRS and calling for the repeal of the 16th amendment and the destruction of the income tax records.
Saying it replaces "a few" taxes as you do is merely a Status Quo Lover's attempt at misdirection hoping the word won't get out ... but it is getting oput despite your efforts, Looey.
NO, Looey wrong this time you make this statement - just like the last x00 times - it does eliminate the oincome tax, etc. exactly as the bill says.
And the new tax system specified by the FairTax bill does NOT then taxe "the ones it did not replace (including itself).". That's merely another of your attempted diversions (or else your ignorance coming to the fore) since you've had THAT pointed out many, many times as well. Even any state sales taxes that might remain are not taxed by the FairTax wither (as you have continually misstated them to be taxed).
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.