H.J.R. 13

1

JOINT RESOLUTION SUPPORTING REPEAL
2 OF FEDERAL ESTATE TAX
3 2003 GENERAL SESSION
4 STATE OF UTAH
5 Sponsor: Craig W. Buttars
6 This joint resolution of the Legislature requests that the members of Utah's congressional
7 delegation work to pass and vote for the immediate and permanent repeal of the Estate
8 Tax.
9 Be it resolved by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
10 WHEREAS, under tax relief legislation passed in 2001, the Estate Tax was temporarily
11 phased out, not permanently eliminated;
12 WHEREAS, women and minorities are very often owners of small and medium-sized
13 businesses, and the Estate Tax prevents their children from reaping the rewards of a lifetime
14 trying to make a better life;
15 WHEREAS, farmers and other small businesses will face losing their farms and
16 businesses if the federal government resumes the heavy taxation of citizens at death;
17 WHEREAS, employees suffer when they lose their jobs when small and medium-sized
18 businesses are liquidated to pay estate taxes and because high capital costs depress the number
19 of new businesses that could offer them a job;
20 WHEREAS, if the Estate Tax had been repealed in 1996, over the next nine years the
21 United States economy would have averaged as much as $11 billion per year in extra output,
22 and an average of 145,000 additional new jobs would have been created;
23 WHEREAS, the persistent uncertainty created by the sunset provision prevents families
24 and small businesses from taking advantage of the temporary repeal; and
25 WHEREAS, having repeatedly passed both the United States House of Representatives
26 and the United States Senate, elimination of the Estate Tax has proven to hold wide bipartisan
27 support:

28 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of the state of Utah
29 requests that the members of Utah's congressional delegation support, work to pass, and vote
30 for the immediate and permanent repeal of the Estate Tax.
31 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution be sent to the members of
32 Utah's congressional delegation.




Legislative Review Note
as of 1-27-03 9:30 AM

A limited legal review of this legislation raises no obvious constitutional or statutory concerns.

Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel