Federal Tax Policy

Feb 8, 2016

Top 400 Taxpayers See Tax Rates Rise, But There’s More to the Story

As Americans were gathering party supplies to greet the New Year, the Internal Revenue Service released their annual report of cumulative tax data reported on the 400 tax r...

read in full

Feb 4, 2016

Chlorine Bleach Plants Needlessly Endanger 63 Million Americans

Chlorine bleach plants across the U.S. put millions of Americans in danger of a chlorine gas release, a substance so toxic it has been used as a chemical weapon. Greenpeace’s new repo...

read in full

Jan 25, 2016

U.S. Industrial Facilities Reported Fewer Toxic Releases in 2014

The Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) data for 2014 is now available. The good news: total toxic releases by reporting facilities decreased by nearly six percent from 2013 levels. Howe...

read in full

Jan 22, 2016

Methane Causes Climate Change. Here's How the President Plans to Cut Emissions by 40-45 Percent.

UPDATE (Jan. 22, 2016): Today, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released its proposed rule to reduce methane emissions...

read in full

more news

Write a Letter to the Editor of Your Paper

If you feel that more tax cuts for multi-millionaires are unfair and unwise use these links to write a letter to the editor of your local or national paper: Just click on any of the links below and follow the instructions on the page that appears next: Full repeal of the estate tax would mean much less money for the things most Americans really care about. If this worries you, click here to send a letter to the editor of the local or national paper of your choice. Do you believe that common sense and basic fairness demand permanent reform, not repeal, of the estate tax?

read in full

PRESS RELEASE: GRAMM-KYL ESTATE TAX PLAN THREATENS TAXPAYERS WITH $850 BILLION PRICE TAG

Proposal Leaves Most Americans to Pick Up the Tab for a Few Multi-Millionaires, Americans for a Fair Estate Tax Coalition Warns FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEWednesday, May 29, 2002 Contact: Gary Bass – (202) 234-8494 OMB Watch Betsy Leondar-Wright – (617) 423-2148, ext. 13 Responsible Wealth Rick Cohen – (202) 387-9177 (w) /(202) 329-4438(c) National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy Proposal Leaves Most Americans to Pick Up the Tab for a Few Multi-Millionaires, Coalition Warns

read in full

Estate Tax Repeal Advocates Up the Stakes in Estate Tax Debate

In an effort to re-emphasize their dogged commitment to tax breaks for the very wealthy, House Republicans announced last week that they would bring up the issue of permanent estate tax repeal for a vote shortly after they return from their Memorial Day recess - on June 5 or 6.

read in full

Citizens for Tax Justice: Estate Tax Questions

Citizen for Tax Justice provides answers to many of your questions about the history of the estate tax and reasons for maintaining the tax. CTJ Estate Tax Analysis More from CTJ

read in full

NETWORK: A National Catholic Social Justice Lobby -- Position Paper

NETWORK opposes the permanent repeal the estate tax. As millions of people – parents and children, the elderly, people with disabilities, and the working poor – are forced to meet their most basic needs through charity, we are dismayed that the focus of attention is not on meeting their needs, but is on furthering tax cuts that will benefit the most affluent. Read the full NETWORK Position Statement on Permanent Repeal of the Estate Tax More on Tax Issues from NETWORK

read in full

Independent Sector Policy Position on the Estate Tax and Charitable Tax Bequests

Read Independent Sector's Policy Position on the Estate Tax. The statement outlines the negative effects of estate tax repeal on charitable giving. More from Independent Sector.

read in full

The Charitable Implications of the Estate Tax

The estate tax generates a significant amount of charitable contributions. In 1999, estate tax filers paid approximately $28 billion in gift and estate taxes, and made charitable bequests of nearly $15 billion. The estate tax plus charitable bequests is an important infusion of capital into our society for public benefit. Overall, the combination of bequests and estate/gift tax payments amounts to an annual infusion of $45 billion addressing public and charitable needs.

read in full

State Fact Sheets

State: Number of Estates $3.5m and over: Returns as Percent of Decedents: Average Estate (in millions): Data above prepared by Judy Xanthopoulos, Ph.D., Quantria Strategies, LLC Estate tax returns by size of gross estate are estimates based on IRS public use Federal and State estate tax data, including "Estate Tax Returns Filed in 1999" and “Estate Taxes by State of Residence of Decedent, 1999.” Click here for further explanation

read in full

Frequently Asked Questions About the Estate Tax

Q: Isn’t the estate tax a form of “double taxation?” First people have to pay income tax on earnings and then they pay again when they die because of the estate tax? A considerable portion of most estates are assets that have appreciated during the decedent’s lifetime on which no income taxes have ever been paid, since inheritances are exempt from income tax and capital gains taxes are only paid on assets that are sold or transferred.

read in full

Fact Sheets on the Estate Tax

3 Downloadable Fact Sheets on the Estate Tax -- in PDF format for easy printing: The fact sheets listed below require Adobe Acrobat Reader -- To download the most recent version for free, click here (If you cannot access the files through the links, right-click on the underlined text, click "Save Link As," download to your directory, and open the document in Adobe Acrobat Reader.) About the Estate Tax Frequently Asked Questions About the Estate Tax Charitable Implications of the Estate Tax

read in full

Pages

more resources

Top 400 Taxpayers See Tax Rates Rise, But There’s More to the Story

Chlorine Bleach Plants Needlessly Endanger 63 Million Americans

U.S. Industrial Facilities Reported Fewer Toxic Releases in 2014

Methane Causes Climate Change. Here's How the President Plans to Cut Emissions by 40-45 Percent.

Write a Letter to the Editor of Your Paper

PRESS RELEASE: GRAMM-KYL ESTATE TAX PLAN THREATENS TAXPAYERS WITH $850 BILLION PRICE TAG

Estate Tax Repeal Advocates Up the Stakes in Estate Tax Debate

Citizens for Tax Justice: Estate Tax Questions

NETWORK: A National Catholic Social Justice Lobby -- Position Paper

Independent Sector Policy Position on the Estate Tax and Charitable Tax Bequests

The Charitable Implications of the Estate Tax

State Fact Sheets

Frequently Asked Questions About the Estate Tax

Fact Sheets on the Estate Tax

Pages

Living in the Shadow of Danger: Poverty, Race, and Unequal Chemical Facility Hazards

A Tale of Two Retirements: One for CEOs and One for the Rest of Us

Blowing Smoke: Chemical Companies Say “Trust Us,” But Environmental and Workplace Safety Violations Belie Their Rhetoric

Gasping for Support: Implementation of Tougher Air Quality Standards Will Require New Funds for State Agencies

Citizen Health & Safety Topics

Recent Reports

Living in the Shadow of Danger: State Scorecards

Living in the Shadow of Danger: Poverty, Race, and Unequal Chemical Facility Hazards

A Tale of Two Retirements: One for CEOs and One for the Rest of Us