Hundreds of leaders of charities are descending on Washington, D.C., on December 4th and 5th to lobby Congress to retain the current charitable deduction that motivates donors to support colleges, hospitals and other nonprofits. Find out how YOU can contact your congressional representative to help save the charitable deduction!
Showing posts with label legislation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label legislation. Show all posts
Federal Estate Tax: Where Art Thou?
by André R. Donikian, JD, President and Editor in Chief
Congress left Washington in December without extending the federal estate tax (FET). Result: There is no FET in 2010, at least perhaps not until Congress tackles this politically charged hot potato this year. And the talk is that when they do, they will make the law retroactive to January 1 to capture taxes from all those who died and who would have been affected.
The retroactive application is not a simple issue and is fraught with constitutional pitfalls. Indeed, the Supreme Court upheld the retroactive application of an increase in the FET rate in 1994. But the issue Congress is expected to adopt this year is the retroactive application of a new law, not a mere rate change. This may be too much of a stretch for the Court.
Congress left Washington in December without extending the federal estate tax (FET). Result: There is no FET in 2010, at least perhaps not until Congress tackles this politically charged hot potato this year. And the talk is that when they do, they will make the law retroactive to January 1 to capture taxes from all those who died and who would have been affected.
The retroactive application is not a simple issue and is fraught with constitutional pitfalls. Indeed, the Supreme Court upheld the retroactive application of an increase in the FET rate in 1994. But the issue Congress is expected to adopt this year is the retroactive application of a new law, not a mere rate change. This may be too much of a stretch for the Court.
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