I also want to thank our witnesses, Congresswoman Jennifer Dunn and Congressman John Tanner, as well as the many small business owners and tax experts for taking the time to testify today. No one should have to visit Uncle Sam and the undertaker in the same day. Only with our government are you given a certificate at birth, license at marriage and a bill at death. Death taxes penalize families, punish thrift and discourage entrepreneurship. The tax has an especially negative effect on family farms and businesses, as I am sure we will hear today from our witnesses.
Many families spend their entire lifetime building their small businesses.
These same families often are forced to sell their business to pay the taxes when they try to pass it on to their children. Of those that fail, nine out of 10 successors cited debilitating estate taxes as the reason for their business failures. Because of the many harmful effects of estate taxes, I am proud to be a cosponsor of H.R. 8 which is sponsored by our two Member witnesses, Representatives Dunn and Tanner. We were able to make some progress on this issue in the tax relief bill last Congress, but more needs to be done. There are many economic motivations to eliminate the estate tax.