Ohio Officials Look at Estate Tax Repeal
January 28, 2011
From the Columbus Dispatch:
Elimination of the estate tax, which hits estates valued at more than $338,333 when a person dies, was among the first 18 bills rolled out yesterday by House Republican leaders, who officially regained control of the chamber last week.
The estate tax brings in about $245 million a year to local governments and about $60 million a year to the state. Some cities, villages and townships rely on it more heavily than others.[…]
John Mahoney of the Ohio Municipal League has fought for a decade to preserve the estate tax, which hits about 7 percent of estates, according to state estimates.[…]
It’s important to note that while only a small number of estates pay an estate tax, the compliance costs of it are much more widespread. Many individuals engage in complex estate planning and/or buy insurance policies to avoid the estate tax. Put another way, the estate tax is one of the least efficient taxes, imposing huge compliance costs for each dollar of revenue collected, relative to other taxes.