Death Tax Repeal Act of 2015

Floor Speech

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Mr. SMITH of Nebraska. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I rise in support of repealing the estate tax. Repealing this death tax is a top priority for Nebraska's farmers, ranchers, and small businessowners--in fact, not just for Nebraska's farmers, ranchers, and small businessowners but for these folks all around the country.

Agriculture, particularly raising cattle and crops such as corn, is a land- and capital-intensive process. These Nebraskans aren't sitting on piles of cash. In fact, their assets are the land and the equipment they use to help feed our Nation and to help feed the world. They pay income taxes on what they earn, and they pay high property taxes on the land on an annual basis. They take great pride in this work and want their children and grandchildren to continue in their livelihoods. They shouldn't have to jump through hoops to ensure their descendants can continue their work when they have passed on.

The death tax doesn't penalize the wealthiest Americans. In fact, they probably don't even feel that penalty. They can plan their estates and give away their wealth as they see fit. It penalizes those who have worked all of their lives and who have reinvested in their family businesses to ensure their families and neighbors have every opportunity to be hard-working taxpayers.

I certainly urge a ``yea'' vote to grow opportunity in the U.S. and to support that growing opportunity.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Madam Speaker, growing up and working on my great-grandfather's farm, I learned many values. One that I was taught is a comparison and, basically, when you are out there working with the hogs, you learn that there is little value in hogwash.

I would compare a lot of the facts that we have been hearing today, that are opposing this legislation, as equivalent to hogwash. And I say that under the stipulation that I have heard numerous facts stated of farms the size of 15,000 acres.

Well, the average family farm in this country is less than 500 acres. If you look at the Bootheel of Missouri, which I represent, every farm in that area, if you would just consider a 500-acre farm and the price of a 500-acre farm, times that by how many acres they have--say, 500 acres times $10,000. That's $5 million--$5 million.

Then you have to put the price of a combine and a tractor to harvest the rice and the cotton. Guess what? They are part of that top 2 percent that the other side says is the wealthiest of the wealthy. Well, guess what?

Less than 2 percent of Americans are farmers. Less than 2 percent of Americans are farmers. This legislation, this tax is directly after farmers.

Our Tax Code, what is wrong with it, it is disadvantaging rural America, and the death tax is part of that disadvantage. You are seeing people leave rural America because of the Tax Code, and this is a way to fix the Tax Code.

When you look at family farmers, 85 percent of their investment is in the land and in the equipment. It is not in liquid assets. And when they get a tax bill, like the Congresswoman from South Dakota who spoke mentioned, they have to either sell their land or they have to take out a loan so they can keep their family business. This is a tax on the American Dream, and this is awful.

The folks on the other side of the aisle have never found a tax that they disliked. Folks, we have to stop this.

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