Death, Taxes, and Uncertainty: The Estate Tax in 2010 and Beyond
Karlyn Bowman, Kevin A. Hassett, Alan D. Viard
November 10, 2009
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2010 may be the best year to die, or at least your heirs may think so. Under current law, the estate tax will be eliminated for those who die next year. But the tax is scheduled to return in full force for those who die in later years. With this short-lived repeal only months away, Congress is preparing to take another look at the estate tax. What are the economic effects of the estate tax? Should it be extended, reformed, or abolished?

At this AEI conference, experts will provide a variety of perspectives on these questions. Lily Batchelder, professor of law and public policy at New York University School of Law, will argue that the estate tax promotes fairness and will discuss ways to reform the tax. Kevin A. Hassett, director of economic policy studies at AEI, will discuss the costs imposed on society by the estate tax. Karlyn Bowman, senior fellow at AEI, will chart the nuances of public opinion on this hotly contested issue. AEI resident scholar Alan D. Viard will moderate.

About the Author

 

Karlyn
Bowman
  • Karlyn Bowman compiles and analyzes American public opinion using available polling data on a variety of subjects, including the economy, taxes, the state of workers in America, environment and global warming, attitudes about homosexuality and gay marriage, NAFTA and free trade, the war in Iraq, and women's attitudes. In addition, Ms. Bowman has studied and spoken about the evolution of American politics because of key demographic and geographic changes. She has often lectured on the role of think tanks in the United States and writes a weekly column for Forbes.com.
  • Phone: 2028625910
    Email: kbowman@aei.org

  • Assistant Info

    Name: Andrew Rugg
    Phone: 2028625917
    Email: andrew.rugg@aei.org
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Kevin A.
Hassett
  • Before joining AEI, Mr. Hassett was a senior economist at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and an associate professor of economics and finance at the Graduate School of Business of Columbia University, as well as a policy consultant to the Treasury Department during the George H. W. Bush and Clinton administrations. He served as an economic adviser to the George W. Bush 2004 presidential campaign and as Senator John McCain's chief economic adviser during the 2000 presidential primaries. He also served as a senior economic adviser to the McCain 2008 presidential campaign. Mr. Hassett is a columnist for National Review.

  • Phone: 202-862-7157
    Email: khassett@aei.org

  • Assistant Info

    Name: Veronika Polakova
    Phone: 202-862-4880
    Email: veronika.polakova@aei.org
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Alan D.
Viard
  • Alan Viard was a senior economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas and an assistant professor of economics at Ohio State University prior to joining AEI. He has also worked for the U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Tax Analysis, the White House's Council of Economic Advisers and the Joint Committee on Taxation of the U.S. Congress. Viard is a frequent contributor to AEI's Tax Policy Outlook, AEI's On the Margin column in Tax Notes and AEI's Marginal Impact column in State Tax Notes. In January 2010, he was named by Tax Notes as a nominee for 2009 Tax Person of the Year. Viard is also the co-author of Progressive Consumption Taxation: The X Tax Revisited published in May 2012.
  • Phone: 202-419-5202
    Email: aviard@aei.org

  • Assistant Info

    Name: Chad Hill
    Phone: 202-862-5862
    Email: chad.hill@aei.org
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