Estate Tax Repeal Update: Where Do the 2008 Presidential Candidates Stand?
A few months ago I wrote about where the three remaining presidential candidates stood on the federal estate tax. Now that there are only two candidates remaining, I decided to take another look. What I found is that even though who will be the next president is still anyone's guess, the future of the federal estate tax is clearer now than it has been in many years.
As I learned several months ago, both John McCain and Barack Obama are still against full repeal of the federal estate tax in 2010.
(Right now in 2008 the amount exempt from the federal estate tax is $2,000,000 and in 2009 the exemption goes up to $3,500,000, but in 2010 the federal estate tax is scheduled to completely go away.) As a recent article by Tom Herman in The Wall Street Journal reports, instead of full repeal of the federal estate tax, Mr. McCain supports a $5,000,000 exemption and Mr. Obama supports a $3,500,000 exemption. For married couples who have created estate plans that make use of AB Trusts, this means that between $7,000,000 and $10,000,000 will be exempt from the federal estate tax. In addition, Mr. McCain would cut the estate tax rate from 45% to 15% but Mr. Obama would keep the rate at 45%.
So, as I mentioned before, there's really no reason to wait and see what the new president will do before making an estate plan. It's quite clear now that regardless of who becomes the next president, the federal estate tax will be with us in some shape or form in 2010 and beyond.
Other Posts on Estate Tax Repeal
As I learned several months ago, both John McCain and Barack Obama are still against full repeal of the federal estate tax in 2010.
(Right now in 2008 the amount exempt from the federal estate tax is $2,000,000 and in 2009 the exemption goes up to $3,500,000, but in 2010 the federal estate tax is scheduled to completely go away.) As a recent article by Tom Herman in The Wall Street Journal reports, instead of full repeal of the federal estate tax, Mr. McCain supports a $5,000,000 exemption and Mr. Obama supports a $3,500,000 exemption. For married couples who have created estate plans that make use of AB Trusts, this means that between $7,000,000 and $10,000,000 will be exempt from the federal estate tax. In addition, Mr. McCain would cut the estate tax rate from 45% to 15% but Mr. Obama would keep the rate at 45%.
So, as I mentioned before, there's really no reason to wait and see what the new president will do before making an estate plan. It's quite clear now that regardless of who becomes the next president, the federal estate tax will be with us in some shape or form in 2010 and beyond.
Other Posts on Estate Tax Repeal
- October 18, 2008: Estate Tax Repeal Update: Should Portability Lead to the Death of AB Trusts?
- November 10, 2008: Estate Tax Repeal Update: Obama Proofing Your Estate Plan
- January 13, 2009: Estate Tax Repeal Update: The End of Repeal
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