On June 9, 2000, 279 members of the House of Representatives wholeheartedly supported the repeal of the federal estate taxes. 136 members voted against the repeal, most of them being Democrats who where in support of reform, not abolition. Estate taxes yield roughly $30 billion dollars a year for the United States Government, also Federal estate taxes affect only about 2 percent of estates, which represents at most the top 5th percentile of families in this country (NYT-Krugman-6/14/00). Therefore, why would anyone in Congress want to do away with something that brings in so much revenue? One would think that it is the power that these families wield. Although they represent a small portion of a Representative's constituency, this small group by far has the biggest voice. So then why would Congress want to throw away $30 billion dollars a year? Because, it is in their best interests and their biggest supporters best interests.Estate taxes are not imposed on inheritances under $675,000, but anything over and above that amount the federal government takes 39% of the total value of the estate. What this translates into is that a wealthy individual can only pass 61% of his total assets to his children or family. The wealthy pay almost all of these taxes. As I stated above, this consists of only the top 5th percent of families in this country so why should it be changed? Because, although they represent only a small minority, this minority has the biggest voice. Elected officials need to raise money for campaigns. Where does this money come from, aside from PAC's and corporation's this money comes from private individuals. How much money is needed? Clawson, Neustadtl, and Weller in their book Dollars and Votes give us a rough idea of what it takes. They write, "How much money would the average candidate need to raise each and every week in the years prior to an electionthey will need to raise $7,000 per week for the House; $15,000 per wee...
