Hill pressured to kill 'death tax'

Anti-tax and family advocacy groups are pressuring lawmakers not to breathe new life into the "death tax" — a levy on personal fortunes that was taken off the books this year, but is scheduled to return at a higher rate in 2011. The fate of the tax, officially known as the estate tax, is directly tied to the ongoing game of political chicken that has sprung up between Democrats and Republicans over whether tax cuts passed under President Bush in 2001 and 2003 should extended before they expire next month. Although the debate has been dominated by the scheduled hike in personal income tax rates, lawmakers also must consider what to do with the other parts of the Bush tax packages, including the refundable child tax credit, taxes on capital gains tax and the "death tax," which is levied on big inheritances. "Out of all those 2011 tax hikes, the one that is the most up in the air is the death tax," said Ryan Ellis, tax policy director at Americans for Tax Reform. "No one can honestly tell you what is going to happen with it."...more