Proceeds from the Estate Tax should go toward the Federal Debt

I believe that death should not cause a family farm or small business to be broken into pieces. But above a reasonable size, I wonder if part of the estate a wealthy American accumulated during their lifetime was aided by the deficit spending their government practiced over those years? I propose that the government target all proceeds from a modest estate tax to pay down the existing federal debt, instead of counting the estate tax in general revenue for the annual budget.

For most of the past 100 years, Americans have lived well while our government passes a burden of debt to future Americans. Why not help ease that burden for our children when the money will be of no further use to the man or woman who earned it? The estate tax usually accounts for only 1-2% of annual federal tax revenue, so lawmakers could find a way to replace that revenue through cost savings in the operating budget. A reduction of $25 billion each year would be a symbolic payment toward our long-term debt.

Now is the time to raise gas taxes

Oil is at $62 per barrel, and gas is below $3 per gallon. If we are serious about breaking the national addiction to imported fossil fuels, then we need to keep the consumers’ cost of oil above $100 per barrel, so that efficiency solutions and renewable energy developments can become established in the marketplace. We should offset this tax on productivity with increased personal income tax deductions, reduced corporate tax rates, and possibly annual stimulus payments.

Americans consumes about 360 million gallons of gas each day. Raising the federal gas tax 12 cents immediately and 3 cents each quarter for the next 8 years (for a total of $1.08 by 2016) would keep the price of gas above $3/gallon, give time for consumers and business to adjust to higher gasoline prices, and would raise $15.8 billion per year now and $142 billion per year in 4 years (assuming consumption remains flat).

We could dedicate a portion of this revenue to increasing the federal highway infrastructure fund and return the rest to taxpayers via either a permanent increase of standard deductions by $3000 per person and $1500 per child, and a reduction in business taxes.

We should tax that which is not sustainable (burning fossil fuels) and remove taxes on that which is sustainable (income, children, and employment).