On July 13, 2010, Jay Heflin posted Kyl seeks to add an estate tax fix to small-business bill (On the Money: The Hill’s Finance & Economy Blog). Heflin reports that Sens. Kyl and Lincoln are trying to add an estate tax fix to the small-business bill:
Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) will once again team up with Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.) on an estate tax fix they hope will be voted on during debate on small-business legislation that creates a $30 billion lending pool and provides approximately $12 billion in tax relief.
“We would like to bring it forward as an amendment to the small-business bill, but it’s up the leader,” Kyl said.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has engaged a procedural maneuver called “filling the tree” that limits the number of amendments that can be offered on a particular bill.
The Senate returned to the small-business bill earlier on Tuesday. . . .
Under the Kyl-Lincoln proposal, estates worth [less] than $3.5 million would initially be exempt from the tax. That exemption level would rise to $5 million over a 10-year period. The tax rate would also be phased-in, ending at 35 percent after 10 years. Estates would have the option to prepay the tax at a lower rate.
(Special thanks to Rania Combs (estate planning attorney, Texas) for bringing Heflin's post to my attention. You can follow Rania Combs on Twitter and learn more about her practice on Texas Wills & Trusts Online.)
