Death by a Thousand Cuts:
An Analysis of the Estate Tax's Demise
TPC Perspectives on Tax Reform Series
Thursday, March 24, 2005
9:30 - 11:00 am
Falk Auditorium
The Brookings Institution
1775 Massachusetts Ave., NW
Washington, DC
Presenters:
Michael J. Graetz
Justus S. Hotchkiss Professor of Law
Yale University
Ian Shapiro
William R. Kenan, Jr. Professor of Political Science
Yale University
Moderator:
William G. Gale
Co-Director, Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center
Senior Fellow and Deputy Director, Economic Studies, Brookings
Discussants:
Leonard E. Burman
Co-Director, Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center
Senior Fellow, Urban Institute
Bill Frenzel
Guest Scholar, Governance Studies, Brookings
Thomas E. Mann
Senior Fellow, Governance Studies, Brookings
In 2001, Congress enacted legislation to phase out the estate tax by 2010. The repeal is effective for only one year, however. The estate tax--referred to by some as the "death tax"--directly affects the wealthiest 2 percent of the population and represents a progressive source of federal revenue and a key incentive for charitable giving. Prior to 2001, the movement to repeal the tax was a primary focus of reform debates, but its elimination seemed highly unlikely. How, then, did the legislation suddenly sail through Congress? And how did so many Americans become opposed to a tax that would never affect them?
At this Brookings/TPC briefing, Yale professors Michael J. Graetz and Ian Shapiro discussed the history of the estate tax and analyze the reform movement through the philosophical arguments that framed it and the interests that drove it. They are the authors of a new book, Death by a Thousand Cuts (Princeton University Press, 2005), that is based on extensive interviews conducted with the relevant policymakers and political players. Following their presentation, a panel discussed those findings and offered insights into the broader implications of the tax reform debate.
For more on the Perspectives on Tax Reform series, visit http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/newsevents/events_prelude_series.
