The Hill News

This week the House of Representatives adopted rules which could make it more difficult to fund more government spending through increased taxes on individuals or businesses. When coupled with the extension of 2001 and 2003 taxpayer relief laws late last year, it would appear many policymakers in Washington have realized higher tax burdens remain ill-advised in the current economic climate.

Unfortunately, some strategically placed administration officials and lawmakers have failed to embrace this approach. They continue to push proposals that reject the common-sense philosophy behind the new House rules and the tax-rate extensions.

As part of the bargaining over extending the current individual tax laws, the president insisted on the resurrection of the death tax -- which fell to zero this year but was poised to roar back in 2011 at 55 percent. The White House compromised at a 35 percent rate, but the problem with this duplicative tax remains: citizens are taxed throughout their entire life on their property, income, and possessions. By taxing individuals' estates after death, the government charges their heirs once again on these same possessions.

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