Myth: The estate tax is a death tax.
Fact: The estate tax is not a tax on death. Its a tax on the transfer of large amounts of money. Ninety-eight percent of Americans who die pass their estate on to their heirs completely tax-free in fact, they get a valuable tax break on capital gains. Zero estate tax is charged on assets left to a spouse or to charity.
Myth: The estate tax must be repealed because it forces family businesses to close.
Fact: This issue has been wildly exaggerated. Only 3 of every 10,000 people who die leave a taxable estate in which a family business forms the majority of the estate. A recent Federal Reserve study found that the average small business is worth $702,566, well below the level at which estate taxes kick in. Virtually all small family businesses can be protected by simply raising estate tax exemption levels.
Myth: The estate tax must be repealed because it forces family farms to sell.
Fact: As with family businesses, this issue has been distorted. Only 3 of every 10,000 people who die leave a taxable estate in which a farm forms the majority of the estate. On April 8, 2001, the New York Times reported that the pro-repeal American Farm Bureau Federation could not cite a single case of a family farm lost due to the estate tax. Like businesses, family farms can be protected by raising exemption levels.
Myth: The estate tax is double taxation.
Fact: The phrase double taxation is a rhetorical device meant to confuse the issue. Money is taxed any number of times as it cycles through the economy, generally during transactions. Workers, for example, pay income, payroll, and sales taxes on their wages. Whats more, the bulk of the largest estates, which consist of unrealized capital gains, would never have been taxed were it not for the estate tax.
-------Original Message-------
Date: 08/28/05 20:24:32
Subject: Re: [QUAD-L] Estate Tax
Sorry guy,
A demo ploy that ignores everybody else who will benifit.
It doesn't "JUST" cover the rich.
It will cover everybody, including family owned farms and small home
businesses.
\This bit of propaganda ignores the facts.
Why should you pay taxes AFTER you're dead, on everything you paid
taxes on when you bought them with the money left over after your
paycheck was taxed.The socialist redistribution of wealth is not a good
thing.
Stunt
>
>
> Hey people,
> This Estate Tax is coming up for a vote and we "all" need to write to
our
> Senators and give our opinion.
> Mark
>
> Subject: Tell your friends: Save the Estate Tax
>
> As soon as the Senate returns to Washington in September they will
vote on
> eliminating the Estate Tax for the richest 2 percent of Americans(1).
If
> they succeed, millionaires will save close to $1 trillion dollars in
the
> first ten years--that tax burden will shift to us and future
generations --
> and Republican leaders are just one or two votes away.
>
> Eliminating the Estate Tax will personally benefit President Bush,
Vice
> President Cheney and 11 other cabinet members up to $344 million -
and we'll
> have to pick up that tab!
>
> Will you sign our petition before the Senate vote?
>
> Thanks!
>
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