Don Nickles: “We passed legislation recently to help the victims of terrorism, including New York City and Oklahoma City, and we…”

“We passed legislation recently to help the victims of terrorism, including New York City and Oklahoma City, and we reduced their estate tax. I think we exempted estates basically under $8 million and said if they have an estate over $8 million, it would be 18 to 20 percent which, in my opinion, is what the maximum death tax should be. I heard my colleague say there is not a taxable event on death. I happen to disagree. If someone dies, it is a taxable event under current code. Some of us are trying to say a taxable event should not be when somebody dies, but when the assets are sold and sold voluntarily, that means the people initiated a transaction and know what the tax will be. Current law is when someone dies, it is a taxable event. They tax the estate up to 50 percent. My colleagues want to exempt estates of $3 million or $4 million, maybe $7 million if it is a couple and they both die at the same time, but we want half of it after that. The Conrad amendment is not 50 percent, it is 55 percent, if you have a taxable estate between $10 million and $17 million. Fifty-five percent is over half; 50 percent is half. That is a lot. Why should the Federal Government be entitled to take half of somebody's property if they happen to have an estate of $20 million?”