In the coming weeks, Congress will once again take up debate on the dreaded estate tax (also known as the "death tax"). The death tax expires for one year, beginning on January 1, 2010, before coming back in full force on January 1, 2011.

Some in Congress are eager to prevent the death tax from expiring for even one year. Those that don't want the tax to die will likely argue for a one-year extension of the tax at its current rate and exemption levels. This would give them the opportunity to raise the tax higher in 2011. Another option could be a permanent extension of the tax at current levels. Neither is a good option. The death tax is a drag on America's family-owned businesses, destroys jobs, and lowers the wages of workers while raising little revenue. Congress should repeal the estate tax once and for all to remove this unnecessary burden from the weakened economy.

Watch how the death tax is a burden on American businesses:
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Fact Sheet: Death Tax: Time to Kill It Forever

Heritage Research

February 3, 2010
Obama's 2011 Budget Tax Hikes Contradict Focus on Job Creation
By Curtis S. Dubay
(WebMemo #2790)
President Obama has said his number one goal in 2010 is to create jobs, but the tax increases in his 2011 budget contradict this objective. ...

December 8, 2009
Tax Hikes Unnecessary for Extension of Current Policy
By Curtis S. Dubay
(WebMemo #2722)
Congress should not use the need to extend current policy as an excuse to raise taxes, because preventing a tax hike is not a tax ...

December 2, 2009
Death Tax: Time to Kill It Forever
By heritage.org
(Fact Sheet #45)
Congress should stick with current policy and permanently repeal the death tax once and for all. Abolition of this harmful tax will help spur economic ...

November 19, 2009
Estate Tax a Killer for Family-Owned Businesses and Their Workers
By Curtis S. Dubay
(WebMemo #2703)
Congress should repeal the estate tax once and for all to remove an unfair burden from the backs of American family-owned businesses and their workers. ...

November 9, 2009
Seven Reasons Why Congress Should Repeal, Not Fix, the Death Tax
By William W. Beach
(WebMemo #2688)
Policymakers should do what their voters want them to do: They should repeal the death tax and kill it, once and forever.

June 16, 2009
The Death Tax: Another Obama Tax Hike Target
By Curtis S. Dubay
(WebMemo #2489)
President Obama should stop hiking taxes and restrain spending immediately. The economy is in a precarious position and cannot afford the damage tax hikes will ...

May 18, 2009
2010 Budget Resolution Raises Taxes and Hurts Economic Recovery
By Curtis S. Dubay
(WebMemo #2452)
Congress recently passed the fiscal year 2010 budget resolution, which includes several provisions that will significantly raise taxes and hurt economic recovery.

January 7, 2009
Economic Recovery: How Best to End the Recession
By J.D. Foster, Ph.D., and William W. Beach
(WebMemo #2191)
The new Administration and new Congress are developing a stimulus program to soften the recession and accelerate the recovery. Given the high level of economic ...

December 3, 2008
Cutting Taxes to Promote Growth and Restore Fairness: A Memo to President-elect Obama
By Alison Acosta Fraser and Curtis S. Dubay
(Special Report #29)
President-elect Obama, a centerpiece of your campaign was your pledge to cut taxes for 95 percent of American workers. Middle-class voters, especially, connected strongly with ...

October 15, 2008
Obama's and McCain's Tax Plans: A Mixed Bag
By J. D. Foster, Ph.D.
(WebMemo #2101)
Senators John McCain (R–AZ) and Barack Obama (D–IL) have released tax plans indicating their priorities when one of them becomes President of the United States. ...

August 2, 2006
Dog Days in the Senate
By William W. Beach
(WebMemo #1185)
Tax legislation would breathe new life into left-wing policy prescriptions.

April 14, 2005
How Federal Death Taxes and the Alternate Minimum Tax Challenge America's Small Businesses
By William W. Beach
(Testimony )
It hardly exaggerates the importance of small businesses to U.S. economic performance to state that economic activity would be substantially less without a deep and ...

April 12, 2005
Now Is (Still) the Time to Permanently Repeal Federal Death Taxes
By William W. Beach
(WebMemo #720)
It's like Groundhog Day: repeal of the estate tax just keeps coming up.

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