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This bill — the For the 99.8% Act — would enact a progressive tax on the estates of the wealthiest Americans and lower the exemption threshold from the estate tax (aka the “death tax”). It would allow estates below $3.5 million per person ($7 million per couple) to pass without the inheritance tax while enacting a sliding tax scale on inheritances over $750,000. This tax scale would have five tiers, increasing the tax rate as the inheritance amount increases. Under current law, individuals can leave up to $11.4 million to heirs through their estates before the money is taxed and amounts above that level are taxed at a 40% tax rate.

Under this bill, the following sliding scale for estates would be enacted:

Estates over $750,000 but not over $3.5 million: tax of $248,300 plus 39% of the excess of the amount over $750,000.
Estates over $3.5 million but not over $10 million: tax of $1,320,800 plus 45% of the excess of the amount of $3.5 million.
Estates over $10 million but not over $50 million: tax of $4,245,800 plus 50% of the excess of the amount over $10 million.
Estates over $50 million but not over $1 billion: tax of $24,245,800 plus 55% of the excess of the amount over $50 million.
Estates over $1 billion: tax of $546,745,800 plus 77% of the excess of the amount over $1 billion.

This bill would also reduce the gift tax exclusion amount to $1 million and increase the value limit for land subject to conservation easements to $2 million. It would also eliminate the generation-skipping transfer tax exemption for certain types of trusts.

Finally, this bill would simplify the gift tax exclusion for annual gifts to make the first $10,000 of any gifts made in a calendar year tax-free. This would include 1) a transfer in a trust, 2) a transfer of an interest in a passthrough entity, 3) a transfer of an interest subject to a prohibition on sale, and 4) any other property transfer that can’t immediately be liquidated by the recipient.

To protect family farms, this bill would allow them to lower their assessed value on farmland by up to $3 million.

","official_title":"To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to reinstate estate and generation-skipping taxes, and for other purposes.","short_title":"For the 99.8 Percent Act","popular_title":null,"short_summary":"For the 99.8 Percent Act This bill imposes increased tax rates on decedent estates, gifts, and generation-skipping transfers. Estates with a value of over $1 billion are taxed at a 77% tax rate. The basic exclusion amount is reduced to $3.5 million. The bill increases (1) to $3 million the reduction in valuations of farmland for estate tax purposes and adjusts such increased amount for inflation, and (2) to $2 million the maximum estate tax exclusion for contributions of conservation easeme...","summarized":true,"cost":null,"cost_commentary":"A CBO cost estimate is unavailable.","impact":"Estate tax; estates worth over $3.5 million; taxation on estates worth over $3.5 million; and the gift tax exclusion.","argument_for":"The gap between the ultra-rich and everyone else is exacerbated by the ease of passing assets between generations without any tax implications. Imposing an estate tax on the top estates (those worth over $3.5 million) would increase revenue for the government and ensure that the wealthy pay their fair share of taxes. ","argument_against":"Death shouldn’t be a taxable event, but this bill would make more American families subject to the estate tax and increase the government’s take from their inheritance. The steep tax rates this bill would impose on the wealthy would encourage them to find loopholes or move out of the U.S. to avoid the tax, both of which hurt economic efficiency. 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An inclusive university promotes and sustains a sense of belonging; it values and practices respect for the talents, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of living of its members.\r\n\r\n","page_title":"Diversity & Inclusion","icons":{"black":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/equality-diversity-and-inclusion/black_equality-diversity-and-inclusion-1534256061.svg","grey":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/equality-diversity-and-inclusion/grey_equality-diversity-and-inclusion-1534256061.svg","white":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/equality-diversity-and-inclusion/white_equality-diversity-and-inclusion-1534256061.svg"},"cover_image_url":"https://assets.countable.us/uploads/upload/image/3785/large_hands-2082x1171.jpg","is_following":false},{"id":"taxes","name":"Taxes","slug":"taxes","description":"US Congressional Legislation related to all types of Taxation: Income Tax, Sales Tax, Property Tax, Capital Gains Tax, Employment Taxes, and the Administration and collection of taxes (including regulating the IRS).","page_title":"Tax Related Federal Legislation including: Income and Sales Tax, Regulating the IRS - Vote on Bills, Stay informed, Hold Your Reps Accountable","icons":{"black":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/taxes/black_taxes-1429042039.svg","grey":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/taxes/grey_taxes-1429042039.svg","white":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/taxes/white_taxes-1429042039.svg"},"cover_image_url":null,"is_following":false},{"id":"families","name":"Families","slug":"families","description":"Congressional legislation related to Families encompassing a wide variety of potential subjects, including: adoption child care, child safety, domestic violence and abuse, marriage, divorce and teenage pregnancy.","page_title":"Federal legislation related to Families - Vote on Bills, Stay informed, Hold Your Reps Accountable","icons":{"black":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/families/black_families-1429042038.svg","grey":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/families/grey_families-1429042038.svg","white":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/families/white_families-1429042038.svg"},"cover_image_url":null,"is_following":false}],"users":[{"name":"Dicr","vote_count":221,"photos":{"large":"https://assets.causes.com/user/avatar/e9XBdlXZ/large_e9xbdlxz-1538070422.jpg","small":"https://assets.causes.com/user/avatar/e9XBdlXZ/small_e9xbdlxz-1538070422.jpg","tiny":"https://assets.causes.com/user/avatar/e9XBdlXZ/tiny_e9xbdlxz-1538070422.jpg"},"links":{"following":"/api/users/e9XBdlXZ/following","followers":"/api/users/e9XBdlXZ/followers"},"about_me":"Concerned American who wants to leave a better America for our children and a better world for all.","twitter_id":null,"facebook_id":null,"youtube_id":null,"google_plus_id":null,"website":null,"slug":"dicr","issue_count":25,"is_following":null,"influence_score":6030,"influence_level":40,"follower_count":218,"following_count":2,"position_count":159,"id":"e9XBdlXZ","partner_id":null},{"name":"jimK","vote_count":501,"photos":{"large":"https://assets.causes.com/user/avatar/9odrQBnb/large_9odrqbnb-1557000969.jpg","small":"https://assets.causes.com/user/avatar/9odrQBnb/small_9odrqbnb-1557000969.jpg","tiny":"https://assets.causes.com/user/avatar/9odrQBnb/tiny_9odrqbnb-1557000969.jpg"},"links":{"following":"/api/users/9odrQBnb/following","followers":"/api/users/9odrQBnb/followers"},"about_me":"Retired, Politically Independent. 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I hear politicians eloquently argue for one side of an issue and later, when it’s to their benefit, just as eloquently argue for the opposite side. OK, so they are good at arguing- but what is that they actually believe? What is it that they actually stand for? An honorable person has values that persist even when it is not convenient or expedient. An honorable person has a moral compass that stops them from doing something wrong even if it is not illegal. 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Should the 'Death Tax' Have Progressive Brackets & Apply to More Americans?