Source: | McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
Wordcount: | 884 |
Many millions of dollars in local pockets are riding on the vote over just how much tax should be paid on large inheritances.
“I believe this county is watching the bill extremely closely,” estate planning attorney
“It’s a huge deal,” said
The debate continued late Thursday in the House, between Republicans who want the rich to keep as much of their cash as possible and not have to pay it in what they call a “death tax” and liberal Democrats who say the rich don’t need an extra tax break, especially one they predicted will increase the federal deficit without helping to boost the economy.
The
Many Democrats in the House were incensed. They said that was the lowest estate tax rate in many decades and was unnecessarily generous to the rich. They wanted the estate tax set at 45 percent and they wanted it to kick in for fortunes of
But
“It’s enormously important here,” said accountant
The three estate planning experts explained that under the
“And for people who are worth
The estate planners said that there are different methods, including the use of trusts, to try to reduce the estate tax paid and that many wealthy people avoid paying portions of that tax. But they also said that it is difficult to preserve very large estates — for example, over
One vehicle for protecting an estate, and one that is used by many wealthy locals, is the
Other vehicles are Limited Family Partnerships and Credit Shelter Trusts — often used to provide for a surviving spouse — but estate planners say those options only offer partial protection from taxes for large estates.
Either of the provisions that were being espoused would be a reduction in the estate tax scheduled to take effectThe
Using data gathered by the
The Democrats said the wealthy don’t need that break and that it will add
On the House floor Thursday, Rep.
Staff researcher Niels Heimeriks contributed to this story
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