Corbett on Death Tax and Farmers

Governor hopeful, Tom Corbett, has voiced support for phasing out the state’s death tax. At a meeting organized by Farm Families for Tom Corbett and Pennsylvania Agricultural Republicans, Corbett cited the state death tax (inheritance tax) as one of the primary challenges to dairy farmers.

Pennsylvania is one of only eight states in the nation to still apply an inheritance tax, and in 2008, collected the highest percentage of state revenue (at 2.5%) of all states through the death tax. The death tax often hurts small, family owned businesses and farms. Last fall, the Pennsylvania Family Institute released a report outlining the costs the (primarily federal) death tax has on our state’s economy.

Eliminating the death tax would present far more benefit to farmers than subsidies could achieve. Corbett seems to be following CF advice by supporting the phase out of the state death tax.