The Death Tax-

THE DEATH TAX SHOULD BE REPEALED BECAUSE:



1. THE TAX IS FUNDAMENTALLY UNFAIR.

· The tax punishes thrift, savings, and hard
work. The tax tells people it is better to consume
today than to invest for the future, to spend lavishly
now and leave no ongoing business interest or assets to
the next generation.

· It is double taxation. Most of the assets
covered by the tax have already been taxed during the
person’s lifetime.

· It diverts resources from investment to
paying for complex trusts and insurance policies to avoid
the tax.


2. THE TAX UNDERMINES JOB CREATION AND WAGE GROWTH


· The center for the Study of Taxation found
more than 70 percent of family businesses do not
survive the second generation and 87 percent do not survive
the third generation because of the estate tax.

· A Heritage Foundation study shows the Death
Tax alone is responsible for the loss of between
170,000 and 250,000 potential jobs each year.

· The National Federation if Independent
Businesses estimates that one-third of all small business
owners wind up selling some or all of their businesses
due to the Death Tax.


3. THE TAX IS A POOR REVENUE PRODUCER



· The tax represents less than 1 percent of
the federal budget. Since the 1930s, revenue from the
tax has fallen steadily as a percentage of total
federal revenue.

· Those with the greatest tax liability spend
an estimated $20 billion a year on tax avoidance,
almost the same as the annual revenue collected.


4. THE TAX HAS STYMIED THE GROWTH OF
MINORITY-OWNED ENTERPRISE


· The tax forced the oldest African-American
owned newspaper—the Chicago Daily Defender—into
bankruptcy

· Most minority-owned enterprises are family
businesses and farms.

· “Permanent repeal of the estate tax will
(help) establish sustainable minority communities through
better jobs and education, health care and safer
communities”---Congressman William Jefferson (D-LA).


5. THE TAX TARGETS THE FAMILY FARM



· The tax encourages small farm owners to sell
out to large corporations to avoid the tax

· Many agricultural enterprises are land rich
and cash poor, so must sell the business or go into
debt to pay the tax.

· The American Farm Bureau Federation and 14
farm organizations representing soybean and wheat
growers, cattlemen, corn growers, cotton growers and milk
producers, among others, signed a letter to Congress
calling for permanent death tax repeal.


6. THE TAX PUNISHES SAVINGS AND PROMOTES CONSUMPTION

· The tax is highest for those who have spent
less on themselves and saved more for their family.

· The wealthy that exercise their talents and
live productive lives pay the most tax, while those
who live a life of leisure and consume their wealth pay
the least.


7. THE TAX IS OPPOSED BY MOST AMERICANS

· In a comprehensive 2005 Tax Foundation
survey, conducted by Harris Interactive, 68% of Americans
supported repeal of the Estate Tax. The figure rose to
73% of middle income Americans ($35,000-$75,000).

· In the same survey, the tax was ranked the
“least fair tax” topping even the income tax.

· There is no partisan divide. Democrats and
Republicans agreed that the tax represents double or
triple taxation and that it is a punishment for those
who have been successful.


8. THE TAX IS OPPOSED BY AMERICAN BUSINESS


· More than 75 national business organizations
representing diverse groups of businesses, have called
for elimination of the tax

· The organizations include the National
Federation of Independent Business, the U.S. Chamber of
Commerce, the National Black Chamber of Commerce, the
U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and the National
Association of Women Business Owners.


Regarding forms of communication, writing a letter to
your senator is the best means of communication and
will generate the best results. Faxes are typically
tallied and emails rarely generate a non-automated
response. While phone calls are good at annoying
congressional staff, they are an ineffective means of
communication. As a result, physical letters have the most
dramatic and profound impact. While we encourage you to
use all forms of communication, please understand that a
physical letter will generate the best results.

Best Regards,



Joe Seehusen

National Executive Director

Libertarian National Committee, Inc.

Contact info for your Senators -

http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm

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