Number: RL33070
Title: Estate Taxes and Family Businesses: Economic Issues
Authors: Jane Gravelle and Steven Maguire, Government and Finance Division 
Abstract: This report discusses the general issue of family-owned businesses, and then discusses the consequences of several options including making no revisions (and hence returning to pre-2001 law in 2011); making the repeal of the estate tax permanent; and, modifying exemptions while retaining an estate tax. This latter discussion considers expanding or altering the existing general or business exemptions, providing an exemption for all business assets (no dollar ceiling or other restrictions), or modifying the QFOBI-type exemption to eliminate a cliff effect that currently exists because only estates with half of the assets in a business were eligible for the special deduction.
Pages: 16
Date: March 24, 2008