TIME IS NOW TO REPEAL THE DEATH TAX -- (House of Representatives - May 18, 1999)

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   (Mr. KNOLLENBERG asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)

   Mr. KNOLLENBERG. Mr. Speaker, it is time to repeal the death tax.

   Under the guise of making the rich pay their fair share, this unfair tax is leading to the demise of small, family-owned businesses and the elimination of good paying jobs.

   According to the Center for the Study of Taxation, 70 percent of family businesses do not survive through the second generation and 87 percent cannot survive through the third. This is because family members often must downsize, must liquidate, and sometimes sell the business outright to pay the death taxes, which can reach as high as 57 percent of the estate in question.

   It also must be pointed out that the death tax represents double and sometimes triple taxation. While every American has a duty to pay taxes, it is simply wrong for the Federal Government to tax the same money time and time again.

   Mr. Speaker, I have introduced a bill to eliminate the Federal estate tax. This bill will restore fairness to our Tax Code, protect family-owned businesses, and encourage saving and investment. I urge my colleagues to support it.

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