Hultgren Votes to Protect Illinois Farmers, Family-Owned Businesses with Repeal of Death Tax

WASHINGTON, D.C. – April 17, 2015 – (RealEstateRama) — U.S. Representatives Randy Hultgren (IL-14) today supported House passage of a bill he cosponsored, H.R. 1105, the Death Tax Repeal Act of 2015, which permanently repeals the estate, or “death,” tax on family-owned farms and businesses.

“For 100 years, the death tax has wreaked havoc on family-owned farms and businesses in Illinois and nationwide. Contrary to misinformation out there, the tax hits hard-working, average Americans who want to pass on their life’s work to their children,” said Rep. Hultgren. “Because assets are many times bound up in land and equipment, countless farmers in Illinois without adequate liquid assets have been forced to sell land in order to pay off the IRS following the death of a family member—adding salt to the wound.

“As someone who grew up in family funeral home, for the federal government to send a bill to grieving loved ones and break up their family’s legacy—on top of man taxing income and previous wealth transfers multiple times over—is simply wrong. Death should not be a taxable event, and the vast majority of Americans agree. Families should not be punished for wanting to see their children prosper and carry on the family business. It’s time for the death tax to die.”

The death tax collects relatively little revenue ($20 billion expected this year). Of the total revenue the federal government collects this year, the death tax would amount to about 0.63 cents out of every $100.

The non-partisan Tax Foundation has said that repealing the death tax will increase GDP by $137 billion a year and create 139,000 new jobs—resulting in a net increase in federal revenue.