Statement on The Estate Tax Relief Act
NFIB Statement on The Estate Tax Relief Act of 2009, H.R. 3905
WASHINGTON, D.C., Oct. 23, 2009 —
Susan Eckerly, senior vice president of the National Federation of Independent Business, the nation’s leading small business association, issued the following statement in response to the introduction of bipartisan legislation that provides permanent relief from the estate tax to small businesses. The legislation is H.R. 3905, The Estate Tax Relief Act of 2009, and is sponsored by Reps. Shelley Berkley (D-Nev.), Artur Davis (D-Ala.), Kevin Brady (R-Texas) and Devin Nunes (R-Calif.):
“This bipartisan legislation represents a step in the right direction to providing small businesses with permanent relief from the estate tax. H.R. 3905 allows for a phased-in estate tax exemption rate of $5 million and a phased-out taxable rate of 35 percent. These provisions are better for small businesses than the current 2009 law and if passed, would give small business owners some certainty that they could depend on when planning for the future of their businesses.
“Currently, planning for the estate tax is an expensive burden that small business owners must go through each and every year in order to ensure that their hard-earned businesses can remain in the family. This requires time, money and resources that small business owners would much rather invest in expanding their businesses and hiring new employees.
“NFIB is encouraged by the bipartisan support for H.R. 3905. Permanent repeal of the estate tax remains one of NFIB’s top priorities, and H.R.3905 moves us closer to that goal. We look forward to working with members of Congress to ensure that the estate tax is no longer such a threat to America’s small businesses.”
###