Ed Pastor: “during the recent consideration of H.R. 8, legislation which would repeal the estate tax, I supported an alternative…”

“during the recent consideration of H.R. 8, legislation which would repeal the estate tax, I supported an alternative which was drafted to give immediate protection to the American farmer and the small businessman whose heirs are in danger of losing their family's hard-earned, life-long business to the Federal government. I have always supported the elimination of the estate tax. And even though I am a cosponsor of H.R. 8, I believe the Democratic alternative is better suited, at this time, for accomplishing what we need in eliminating this unfair tax. The Democratic alternative immediately provides a $4 million per family exclusion for farms and small businesses and it lowers the tax rate. H.R. 8 takes ten years before it is fully phased-into place. In short, the Democratic alternative helps the right people right now. It does more and does it quicker than the version of H.R. 8 which I cosponsored back in July of 1999. At that time, there was no better alternative and it was assumed that a comprehensive tax package would be instituted which would provide across-the-board benefits for hard-working middle-class citizens as well as the wealthy. Standing alone, H.R. 8 does nothing for middle-income families.”