APRIL 12, 2010 – Continuing his efforts to reduce the tax burden on Kentucky families, U.S. Representative Ed Whitfield (KY-01) signed a pledge recently to permanently repeal the Federal Estate and Gift Taxes, more commonly referred to as the ‘Death Tax.’
“I have long believed that Kentuckians know far better than Uncle Sam what to do with their hard-earned dollars,” Whitfield said. “The ‘Death Tax’ is an unfair hit to residents of the First Congressional District and their families and I will continue to do all that I can to ensure it is repealed.”
Whitfield signed the Pledge which is being circulated to Members of Congress by the American Family Business Institute. Whitfield has been a longtime supporter of repealing the death tax and lowering taxes across the board, which would, in turn, help spur economic growth.
The Federal Estate and Gift Tax is imposed on the transfer of all taxable estates and gifts of a deceased person passed onto a beneficiary. The tax is consistently ranked as the least fair and most unpopular tax in America. Nearly 75 percent of Americans believe it should be repealed.
Furthermore, many experts argue that the Estate Tax has a negative impact on the U.S. economy and job creation. Some economists have found that the Estate Tax lowers overall employment in America by 1.5 million jobs. This tax hits small businesses, who have been responsible for 60 to 80 percent of all net new jobs in the last decade, particularly hard. According to some experts, repealing the Estate Tax would add $119 billion to GDP and boost workers’ income by $79 billion.
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