Thune to Introduce Death Tax Repeal Act
“It is time to end this punishing and burdensome tax once and for all.”
February 13, 2025
February 13, 2025
Click here to watch the video.
WASHINGTON — U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) today delivered the following remarks on the Senate floor:
Thune’s remarks below (as delivered):
“Mr. President, later today I will introduce a bill to repeal the death tax.
“As I mentioned, as a resident of a rural state filled with family farms and ranches, I have made death tax repeal a priority for a long time.
“And I was proud to help secure a doubling of the death tax exemption in the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.
“This doubled exemption has provided certainty to a lot of farms and ranches and small businesses over the past seven years.
“But the expanded exemption is expiring at the end of this year.
“And it’s my hope that we will not merely extend this exemption, but that we will get rid of this fundamentally flawed tax once and for all.
“Mr. President, the death tax is fundamentally flawed both in theory and in practice.
“There should be a limit to how many times the government can tax you.
“The money you leave at your death has already been taxed by the government at least once, which makes the death tax double taxation.
“And the government isn’t even profiting all that much from this double taxation.
“That’s right.
“The death tax accounts for a teeny, tiny fraction of government revenue.
“In fact, there is reason to believe that the government would collect more in taxes if it got rid of the death tax entirely, due to the economic growth and job creation that would stem from its elimination.
“So how is there any support left for this burdensome tax?
“Well, Mr. President, that’s a good question.
“For some, of course, heavy taxation is axiomatic.
“Do well, their thinking runs, and the government should come after you.
“Some think that you shouldn’t be able to pass the results of hard work down to your children upon your death.
“Mr. President, death tax proponents tend to talk as if the death tax only affects the extremely wealthy.
“But nothing, of course, could be further from the truth.
“The death tax can sweep up those who have very little in the bank – notably, family farms and ranches and family businesses.
“How?
“Well, farming and ranching is often a cash-poor business.
“A farmer might have substantial-looking assets on paper, but the vast majority of that is land and farming equipment.
“Only a small fraction of it is money in the bank.
“On top of that, farm land can often be valued at a level that is inconsistent with its agricultural productivity value.
“A farmer might have land with a substantial value on paper, but the crop yield on that land could be worth far, far less.
“So what happens when a farmer or rancher dies and his estate is subject to the tax?
“There’s a very good chance that his liquid assets – in other words, the cash that he has available in the bank – won’t come close to covering the tax bill from the federal government.
“And the only alternative for his heirs may be to start selling off land or farm equipment to pay the tax.
“In some cases they will be able to keep the farm – just a smaller version of it.
“In others, they may have to sell off the family farm entirely.
“The case is similar with family-owned businesses.
“The owner might appear to have substantial-looking assets on paper, but only a small fraction of that may be money in the bank.
“The vast majority may be tied up in the business.
“And once again, when the federal government comes around demanding a huge portion of this individual’s taxable estate, there may not be anywhere close to enough money in the bank to pay the tax.
“To pay the federal government, the owner’s descendants will have to sell off part or all of the family business.
“Now, Mr. President, family farms and ranches are the lifeblood of rural communities in South Dakota.
“They’re a source of jobs, they provide support for local businesses, they help build up local schools and local infrastructure.
“Losing a local farm can hit rural communities very, very hard.
“Especially when that farm or ranch is bought up by an out-of-state business with few ties to the community – and limited interest in building it up.
“And, Mr. President, it’s not just those who actually get hit by the estate tax who suffer.
“A lot of family farms and ranches and family businesses spend a lot of time and money on estate planning to avoid being hit by this tax.
“That’s time and money that could have gone into building their business, investing in new equipment, hiring new workers, and the list goes on.
“Some set aside capital to prepare for the death tax – capital that, again, could go into building up the farm or ranch or hiring new workers for the family business.
“As one of my Democrat colleagues, the senior senator from Washington, said a while back, and I quote, ‘The estate tax is bad for businesses. It is bad for workers and new job creation. And it is bad for our communities who are watching their local, family-owned businesses get swallowed up by large corporations.’
“Well, Mr. President, as I said, we protected a lot more family farms and family businesses by doubling the death tax exemption in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act back in 2017.
“But we didn’t protect them all.
“And those we did protect will lose those protections at the end of this year.
“It is time to end this punishing and burdensome tax once and for all.
“I want to thank my Republican colleagues who have joined me in sponsoring this legislation.
“And, Mr. President, I hope that 2025 will be the year that we permanently bid farewell to the death tax.”
Next Previous
