On October 22nd, a bill to permanently extend the federal estate tax for 2010 and beyond was introduced by a bipartisan group of Congressional Representatives. All four Representatives are also members of the House Ways and Means Committee – the tax-writing committee in the House. The bill would rescind 2010’s scheduled repeal of the estate tax. In addition, over the next ten years, the bill would increase the federal estate exemption amount and reduce the top estate tax rate as indicated in the table set forth below:
|
YEAR |
EXEMPTION |
RATE |
||
|
AMOUNT |
||||
|
2009 |
$3,500,000 |
45% |
||
|
2010 |
$3,650,000 |
44% |
||
|
2011 |
$3,800,000 |
43% |
||
|
2012 |
$3,950,000 |
42% |
||
|
2013 |
$4,100,000 |
41% |
||
|
2014 |
$4,250,000 |
40% |
||
|
2015 |
$4,400,000 |
39% |
||
|
2016 |
$4,550,000 |
38% |
||
|
2017 |
$4,700,000 |
37% |
||
|
2018 |
$4,850,000 |
36% |
||
|
2019 or thereafter |
$5,000,000 |
35% |
After 2019, the $5 million exemption amount would be indexed for inflation. While the introduction of such legislation is often the last time it sees the light of day, the fact that a bipartisan group (two Democrats and two Republicans) introduced the legislation, combined with their common membership on the Ways and Means Committee, may give the bill some traction. Ultimately, Ways and Means Chairman Charlie Rangel will be instrumental in deciding the nature of any legislation that moves out of the committee. Stay tuned!
I welcome your comments and questions!
