Late Billionaire's Family Paid No Estate Taxes Because Congress Allowed Tax To Lapse

New York Times:

A Texas pipeline tycoon who died two months ago may become the first American billionaire allowed to pass his fortune to his children and grandchildren tax-free.

Read the whole story: New York Times

Comments

[JScott]

11:41 PM on 06/10/2010

During his life, Mr. Duncan contributed to a wide assortment of wildlife foundations and community institutions like the Houston Zoo and Houston Museum of Science, and an assortment of medical institutions. The various medical centers at Baylor College of Medicine received more than $250 million from Mr. Duncan and his wife, with more than $100 million used to found the Dan L. Duncan Cancer Center.

Yup has to make up for all the business that he did w/petrochemicals that cause most of these problems like loss of wildlife habitat and cancer causing chemicals.

Sadly all those contributions will never be enough to repair all the damage a bp oil spill would cause.
Thats why the wealthy need to pay more taxes.

[deepintheheartoftejas]

09:41 PM on 06/10/2010

Excellent! I've got the perfect plot for my next mystery novel. It was a dark & stormy night... 8 years ago when George W. Bush was plotting the perfect murder to get the family fortune, tax-free... all he had to do was demagogue through an "anti-death-tax" bill, and then carefully arrange for GHW Bush to die in 2010.

If I were president #41, I'd be carefully checking the cables on my parachute for my next skydiving jump!

[JNarragansett]

03:38 PM on 06/10/2010

Liberals should be careful in talking about how people will act regarding the change in the estate tax. You don't want to admit that people change their behavior in response to tax levels do you? You need the premise that increasing tax rates does not change productive behavior.

[robmclaughjr]

04:15 PM on 06/10/2010

If the rich don't want to live in the Western World where we have estate taxes to prevent the formation of royalty, they should move the the third world. Things work just as GOPs think they should in the third world. Any clown living off inherited wealth is pathetic.

[JNarragansett]

04:28 PM on 06/10/2010

Estate taxes do more to prevent the moderately wealthy from becoming rich than they do distribute the money of the extremely wealthy. Though I think you missed the point of my comment.

Just for fun: If you think such arguments are valid, then if you want a centrally planned economy, head to North Korea.

[robmclaughjr]

04:33 PM on 06/10/2010

How can estate taxes prevent the moderately wealthy from becoming rich? THEY'RE DEAD. They cannot become wealthy if they are dead. This is about passing unearned wealth to others in order to create royalty. Otherwise we end up with the horrible conditions of the 1890's where the great majority were poor slaves while a small few reaped all the wealth of the poor created.

[norepublicanleftbehind]

03:37 PM on 06/10/2010

I don't think any family should pay estate tax.

[robmclaughjr]

03:02 PM on 06/10/2010

Disgusting people. Those children did NOTHING to earn that money and deserve ZERO RESPECT. This is the GOP dream, to create a class of lazy, stupid royalty whom they expect the rest of us to worship. They should be spit on instead.

[nccanuck]

03:15 PM on 06/10/2010

So I take it you give your kids absolutly nothing then, correct, Christmas, birthdays, easter, etc? Everything you give them is earned huh. So they actually work for you as employee's then. Speaking of stupid and lazy, here's a mirror.

[robmclaughjr]

04:10 PM on 06/10/2010

That's right! My kids earn their money. They work for it. You GOPs don't know what the word means. Inherited wealth is royalty. Theodore Roosevelt had very good reasons for creating the inheritance tax. Spoiled morons living off unearned income is a good way to destroy the US.

[robmclaughjr]

04:11 PM on 06/10/2010

Hey, they don't have to have an estate tax. BURY THE RICH WITH THEIR MONEY!

[shark attack]

08:04 AM on 06/10/2010

To All HuffPo readers this string:

Apparently, African-American leaders across the country didnt share JAKK and ANIMALLOVER6's view of animal cruelty being a good comparison to slavery and lynchings.

In 2005 PETA ran a campaign comparing the enslavement and lynching of blacks to animal cruelty.

The local NAACP chapter protested the campaign in New Haven, CT. African-Americans at the event protested the event.

The local NAACP chapter in Greater Waterbury, CT, condemned the campaign.

The national NCAAP spokesperson condemned the campaign.

Representatives from the Black Holocaust Museum decried the comparison.

A Southern Poverty Law Center spokesperson called the campaign disgusting.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/08/13/national/main777016.shtml

http://www.nhregister.com/articles/2005/08/09/import/15000578.txt

http://eco-health.blogspot.com/2008/11/privilege-us-vegan-movement-whiteness.html

http://consumerfreedom.com/news_detail.cfm/h/2867-peta-goes-all-in-with-the-race-card-takes-a-bad-beat

And this was two years after PETA apologized a similar campaign where they compared the Holocaust to animal cruelty. PETA was ripped by the Anti-Defamation league in that case.”

[loki]

01:49 AM on 06/10/2010

I know this is a one time, hopefully, thing, but the rich really dont pay the taxes they claim to. They pay lawyers and accountants and others to hide , use loopholes and more, to avoid paying the amount of taxes they are claiming they pay. Its kind of like when insurance companies cry that they had 100 million in claims against them, and they are doing the best they can to stay afloat, but what they dont say is that they only paid 1 million of the 100 million in claims. Its all smoke and mirrors to keep their privileged lifestyle and world from changing.

[RickshawJohnson]

10:00 AM on 06/10/2010

So that must explain how the top 5% of income earners pay 95% of all the taxes in this country?

[shaggyct]

11:15 AM on 06/10/2010

Where did you get that figure?

http://www.ntu.org/tax-basics/who-pays-income-taxes.html

The top 5% pays about 60% of all income taxes, NOT 95%. But they do own approximately 90-95% of the nation's wealth.

[MUOH]

08:28 PM on 06/09/2010

Nothing happens in vacuum.

The feds passed on about $4.5 billion in taxes because the estate tax was allowed to lapse. About 8% of all taxes collected are used to finance interest payments on the debt. The $360,000,000 that would have been used to fund payments on past debt now has to come from somewhere else. Every man, woman and child in the US is now on the hook for an additional $1.16 in interest payments on the national debt. Hate on the estate tax all you want but remember that every dollar not collect means that it has to come from somewhere.

Hope you all enjoy subsidizing the winners of the genetic lottery.

[nccanuck]

09:59 AM on 06/10/2010

Subsidizing winners of a genetic lottery! ROTFLMAO, you people come up with the stupidest things. Genetics doesn't play any part in what your life turns out like, YOU play the biggest part of it, for you to play off the genetic lottery BS does a disservice to every person who has risen up out of there supposed genetic problem and overcome. A good example would be the Will Smith movie where the man when dealt with a poor hand, sucked it up and overcame, I suggest you look at our own troops who have suffered amputations and overcome and have success in physical sports where you and I would crumble. I will say you are, it has to come from somewhere so when you see the government implementing more and more programs with no reason other than it might work, think about your wallet getting lighter.

[ForObamaInDallas]

10:51 AM on 06/10/2010

Actually, it does play a HUGE part in what your life turns out like.

The example you gave was an extraordinary example.. For the most part, those who weren't smart enough to choose rich parents have far less opportunities than others with rich and/or smart parents.

[SeeTheDesert]

08:07 PM on 06/09/2010

Whatever.

People will come up with all sorts of reasons why a person or situation should be
taxed based on what that tax money could be used for, that person's gross income,
other events altogether, such as oil companies, banks, bailouts, etc. that make it
seem as if wealthy people are all conniving gluttons.

The right question is if the tax holds up ethically and philosophically on its own,
whether it is applied to the wealthiest or the poorest (Think the Categorical Imperative). An estate tax is one of the
craziest, most backward taxes.

A father decided to put money away for his kids, as any good father would do. Now why should the government step in and take someof that away for whatever some senator from South Carolina wants to put it towards, like some giant pixie stick factory? Just because one dad put more away
for his kids than another should open him to an unethical estate tax.

[ForObamaInDallas]

06:50 PM on 06/09/2010

Interesting how conservatives are against entitlement programs except for the inheritance entitlement.

[ForObamaInDallas]

06:55 PM on 06/09/2010

More.

Really, heirs are receiving income through no merit of their own other than through the generosity of the benefactor. People accept their inheritance either because they are greedy, but mostly because they feel entitled to the inheritance. Thus, this is an entitlement program.

However, it is really income to the heir. Don't forget, income is taxed. To use terms like "estate tax," "death tax," or even "inheritance tax" is disingenuous. It is really income tax for the person receiving the inheritance, or, more aptly, the income.

[GhostofBillHicks]

07:02 PM on 06/09/2010

They[rich people] have the ultimate entitlement program.It works like this:I have A LOT of money,therefore I am ENTITLED to have a lot more!

[vonric]

09:02 PM on 06/09/2010

and your persistence in describing inheritance as income would mystify any halfway decent estate attorney. Press on, if you will, and I dearly hope that you are never presented with the complexities of inheriting squat.

[CoryH]

07:57 PM on 06/09/2010

Keeping my own money is now an entitlement? Wow, that is news to me.

[ForObamaInDallas]

07:59 PM on 06/09/2010

Uh, no. You're wrong. I did not say that and you are making this mean something it doesn't.

If you're dead, you're not keeping anything. If you bequeath your money to someone else upon your death, YOU'RE STILL NOT KEEPING IT.

Duh.

[ForObamaInDallas]

08:00 PM on 06/09/2010

.Uh, no. You're wrong. I did not say that and you are making this mean something it doesn't.

If you're de.ad, you're not keeping anything. If you bequeath your money to someone else upon your d.eat.h, YOU'RE STILL NOT KEEPING IT.

Duh.

[marco01]

05:34 PM on 06/09/2010

UpFromLiberalism

liberals believe when we pull out of Iraq they trust the bad guys will stop what they're doing because they now think we're good people.
----------------------------------------------

marco01

More simple minded caricatures

You have no idea what liberals really think.

We expect the Iraqis to act like people. When a foreigner invades, we expect a rise in nationalism and radicalism, and that is exactly what happened.

As I recall, conservatives were expecting rose petal covered streets...

LOL

[EnterUsernameHere]

05:50 PM on 06/09/2010

>>As I recall, conservatives were expecting rose petal covered streets

You would be wrong again. You don't bring a military when you expect rose petals.

[stealur]

06:45 PM on 06/09/2010

Ummm yeah, about that-

http://www.usatoday.com/educate/war28-article.htm

[marco01]

04:11 AM on 06/10/2010

From the above cited article.

"Then, Vice President Cheney, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Air Force Gen. Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, spoke optimistically in interviews and at briefings about the prospects that the war would be short, Iraqi resistance limited and IRAQI CITIZENS WELCOMING (emphasis added)."

" "The public has very short memories." "

I don't, I remember all the glowing predictions of liberated Iraqis welcoming US soldiers in the streets.

[GhostofBillHicks]

06:00 PM on 06/09/2010

marco01,I think "UpFrom" is gone.Glenn Becks on right now.He must of left to watch,HaHaHa!!Those kinds of people need that reassurance and reinforcement to justify their misguided beliefs.
You put up a pretty good argument,man.

[Nelson Montana]

05:07 PM on 06/09/2010

People don't mind paying taxes, but...

... when they expect it to be used for creating green jobs, repairing infrastructure and improving quality of life and instead they see bailouts to banks, handouts to Wall street and BP paying off inspectors so they can continue polluting the earth for profit, AND taxes go up...well...that's when people start to get pissed off.

[stealur]

05:11 PM on 06/09/2010

I think many people don't even want to see it used for green jobs or infrastructure. I believe the conservative meme is 'defense only'?

[Tkevan]

10:36 PM on 06/10/2010

No, those things inumerated in the constitution that are the responsibilities of the federal government.

[stealur]

05:12 PM on 06/09/2010

But yes, the way it has been spent lately isn't inspiring.

[Electronicsboy]

05:02 PM on 06/09/2010

Don't worry, you're not one of the 0.24 percent rich enough to pay estate taxes. But YOU'LL pay the taxes these billionaires routinely avoid. And they're not taxing "death." They're taxing the people who just came in to a whole pile of money for doing nothing.
Get smart and stop being a stooge for Billionaire cheats:
http://www.cbpp.org/cms/index.cfm?fa=view&id=2655

[jnratliff]

05:05 PM on 06/09/2010

Fanned!

[EnterUsernameHere]

05:07 PM on 06/09/2010

Even with legal tax reductions, they still pay more than you do. Why are you NOT willing to pay your fair share equal in dollars to what they pay? You are the cheat not them. When they pay less than you do, then you can call them a cheat.

[primordialsoup]

05:10 PM on 06/09/2010

They make most of the money, so they should pay most of the taxes. Pretty simple, eh?

[jnratliff]

05:10 PM on 06/09/2010

Wow the depth of your stupidity knows no bounds! Amazing!

[dontomas]

04:49 PM on 06/09/2010

Hey Bungalow Bill, what did you kill, Bungalow Bill. He kills in the jungle, he kills in the market place and he kills on his estate taxes. Rest in Peace, your great, great, great grandchildren are set for life.

[stealur]

04:56 PM on 06/09/2010

Well, they earned it y'know!

[doctorkosan]

05:00 PM on 06/09/2010

The kids did not earn it. It is unearned income in IRS parlance and should be subject to tax just like your bank interest.

[RickshawJohnson]

10:10 AM on 06/10/2010

Who are you to say what they did or didn't earn? It belongs to their family, NOT YOU!

How would you like it if your grandfather was going to leave you his Rolex that had been in the family for 60 years, and upon his death I came along and said "Hey! You didn't earn that! You need to sell it and give the government 55% to be fair!"

[UpFromLiberalism]

04:57 PM on 06/09/2010

jealous much?

[GhostofBillHicks]

05:15 PM on 06/09/2010

Hey Pepe Lopez!You need to stop confusing outrage and disgust with jealousy.Your a real piece of work,man!

[Animal Compassion]

04:39 PM on 06/09/2010

Wish those lions were alive to wipe that smug little smile off of bald man's face!

[UpFromLiberalism]

04:46 PM on 06/09/2010

helllllloooo

he's dead

[EnterUsernameHere]

04:46 PM on 06/09/2010

Why?