Letter to the Editor: So-called "Death Tax" is not bankrupting anyone

We are told the “death tax” is terrible and should be repealed because it hurts small businesses. If it were only true.

First, the federal estate tax provides an exemption from taxes for the first $5.43 million for an individual or $10.86 million for a couple. This means that 99.8 percent of taxpayers have NO federal estate tax to pay. Not one penny.

Only 0.2 percent of taxpayers, who are also top income earners, pay this estate tax – after the exemptions and other tax breaks. While the top statutory rate is 40 percent, the average paid tax rate is 16.6 percent according to the Center on Budge...