An eye opening interview on the Death Tax with Dick Patten

Dick Patten is the President of American Family Business Institue. Under his leadership the AFBI has gained a dominant role in the Death Tax repeal battle. The AFBI has offices in Washington D.C., Birmingham AL, and Seattle WA.

According to Patten, “The Death Tax is a survival issue for family businesses. It puts family businesses at a competitive disadvantage with their publicly-traded competitors often forcing families to sell off their businesses and farms to pay for Estate Taxes.”

Dick Patten’s history in fighting the Death Tax began in 1981 when he filed an initiative to the voters of the State of Washington (Initiative 402) to repeal the Washington State Inheritance and Gift Taxes. The organization he founded collected approximately 200,000 signatures and was approved by 72% of Washington State voters.

He has been involved in Federal Estate Tax repeal efforts since 1997.

What is the Death Tax?

The death tax (a.k.a., the federal estate tax) is a tax applied to the transfer of a person’s assets at death. It is defined by the Internal Revenue Service as “a tax on your right to transfer property at your death.”[1]

Under current law, the estate tax was repealed for one year on January 1, 2010. On January 1, 2011 the estate tax is set to return at a rate of 55 percent on all assets above a $1 million exemption amount. See “The Current Fight” for more information.[2]

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