U.S. House votes to repeal estate tax

Washington--The U.S. House of Representatives voted 240 to 179 on Thursday to repeal the Estate Tax, the tax levied on a taxpayer after his or her death and paid by the administrator of the estate or heirs.

The vote came down largely along party lines--Republicans are for doing away with what they call the “death tax” while Democrats are against it, with only seven Democrats voting yes to the repeal.

Despite the House’s passage of the repeal--which very purposefully took place the day after Americans filed their taxes--it is unlikely to go anywhere under the current administration, as it faces opposition in the Senate and, beyond that, the threat of a veto by President Barack Obama.

The vote, however, sets the stage for possible repeal in 2017 when a new president takes office, proponents of doing away with the tax said.

Originally enacted nearly 100 years ago to break up the transfer of large fortunes passed from generation to generation in the same family, the tax applies to estates worth more than $5.43 million for an individual and $10.86 million for a couple, and the top tax rate on households that exceed these thresholds is 40 percent.

The current rate was set as part of compromise reached in the 2012 American Taxpayer Relief Act, which prevented the tax rate from reverting to 55 percent and the exemption level from dropping to $1 million for individuals and $2 million for couples.

Republicans, along with small business owners--including many independent jewelers--want to see the tax eliminated entirely because of the financial burden it imposes on those who wish to pass their family business from one generation to the next.
 
Back in 2012, when the current estate tax exemptions were set to expire, Jewelers of America was among those lobbying for a full and permanent repeal of the Estate Tax.

The organization said in a statement issued Friday that it applauds the House’s passage of legislation that would completely repeal the tax. “We remain concerned that family jewelry businesses could face … high tax rates in the future. If that happens, these taxpayers would face an estate tax burden that could force them to ‘sell the family farm’ after generations in business.”

Democrats and Obama stand firm against repeal because they argue that the estate tax impacts a very small percentage of American households.

Repealing it would benefit