Is Estate Tax Reform Still Possible Before the 2006 Election?
In late July, the House of Representatives combined three bills into one “Trifecta” bill. The bill combined an estate tax reform compromise, an increase in the minimum wage and various popular tax extenders. Despite the popular tax extenders and an increase in the minimum wage, Democratic Senators opposed the estate tax compromise and the bill failed by a vote of 56-42. Following the August recess, the question now is whether the House and Senate will split up the three bills or present the Trifecta bill again. Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ) has been the leader in the Senate for the estate tax repeal movement. Sen. Kyl indicated that there were no plans to offer a different compromise in the estate tax bill. He stated, “I wouldn’t anticipate major changes to the estate tax reform. It doesn’t appear that is what it would take to get it pass.” The current estate tax compromise involves an increase over a period of years of the $2 million estate exemption to $5 million by 2015. The tax rate for esta
