Senator Jim DeMint Signs Death Tax Repeal Pledge
October 6, 2010
Commits to Fight for Repeal in Congress
WASHINGTON, DC – October 6, 2010 – Senator Jim DeMint has signed theAmerican Family Business Institute’s (AFBI) “Death Tax Repeal Pledge.” By signing the pledge, Senator DeMint commits to vote for permanentrepeal of the Federal Estate Tax, commonly referred to as the “DeathTax.”
AFBI’s President Dick Patten praised Senator DeMint for signing thepledge, saying “By supporting estate tax repeal, Senator DeMint willhelp save local jobs and businesses.”
A recent study from the American Family Business Foundation found thatrepealing the Death Tax would increase nationwide employment by 1.5million jobs. In South Carolina alone, repealing the Death Tax wouldadd over 20,000 new jobs.
“Senator DeMint has been a strong advocate for permanently repealingthis unfair double tax. He understands that the Death Tax penalizesfamily farmers and business owners when they die,” Patten added. “Withthe economy in the midst of a prolonged recession, we need to behelping family businesses and farmers, not hitting them with anadditional tax.”
The estate tax is a tax on the net value of a decedent’s estate,including all personal and business assets, before distribution totheir heirs. Because business assets are included, the Estate Tax hitsfamily business owners and farmers – the engines of economic growth –particularly hard.
The Federal Estate Tax has expired for one year in 2010, but willreturn at a 55 percent rate on all assets over $1 million in 2011unless Congress acts first. Most political observers expect a heatedlegislative battle over the tax this year.
All pledge signers can be found on AFBI’s interactive, online map available at their website here: http://www.nodeathtax.org/map.
The American Family Business Institute, www.nodeathtax.org,is a national, non-partisan organization of farmers and business ownerswho are committed to permanent repeal of the Death Tax.
The American Family Business Foundation is a think tank focused onquestions about the federal estate tax and its impact on familybusinesses, farms, and the overall economy.
