Herb Kohl: “I rise to explain to the people of Wisconsin my vote this morning on the estate tax. The arguments surrounding estate…”

“I rise to explain to the people of Wisconsin my vote this morning on the estate tax. The arguments surrounding estate tax repeal are muddled, and I believe there are important clarifications to make. First, small businesses and farms rarely--if ever--are forced to sell off assets or close up shop to pay the tax. Under the current exemption, roughly 99 percent of estates owe nothing in estate taxes. When the exemption expands to $2.5 million, 99.9 percent of all estates won't owe a dime. According to a report by the Tax Policy Center, in 2011, with a $3.5 million exemption, only two of every 100,000 people who die that year would be subject to the estate tax. The second explanation is of what the Senate voted on today. Today's vote was on a motion to proceed to a bill to repeal the estate tax. Not to proceed to a compromise or any other deal--but to full repeal. I oppose full repeal of the estate tax. Our Nation can no longer afford this tax break for the very well off. I supported the 2001 tax bill because we were in a time of surplus. That is not the case today. Now we face huge deficits, deficits amplified by the war on terror and reconstructing the gulf coast. According to the non-partisan Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, permanently repealing the estate tax would add about $1 trillion to our national debt from 2011 to 2021. We cannot afford, at this time, these kinds of costs.…”