The Death Tax is killing family businesses

Whitman “Whit” Leverett was born just a few weeks ago, on September 26 — all of 20 inches and 8.2 lbs — and already his father Clayton is concerned about whether Whit will be able to keep the family’s fifth-generation, 150-year-old ranch. The Leverett family has twice felt the cut of the death tax. The family was forced to sell thousands of acres to pay the dreaded federal estate tax when Clayton’s grandmother died. When his father passed away even more land had to be put up for sale, employees were let go and Clayton was forced to take on a second job in construction to keep up the tax payments. Every death shrinks the business and makes it more difficult to keep it going. One more strike from the grim reaper and the IRS and the ranch likely will be sold. Whit’s future — and the future of ranchers and farmers across the country — stands in the balance...more