States Rebel, Won’t Conform to Trump Estate Tax Cuts

Prior to last year’s tax overhaul, many states linked their estate taxes to the federal guidelines. Now those states are a bit in limbo as they attempt to adjust to the new $11.8 million estate threshold. 17 states and Washington, D.C. levy an estate tax or inheritance tax (Maryland is the sole state with both levies) in 2018, while others have estate taxes that start in later years.

In the fall of 2017, Connecticut changed its estate tax law to phase in its estate and gift tax exemption to the match the federal exemption by 2020. The latest change—signed into law in June—extends the phase-in to 2023. Tax conformity has been one of the issues holding up the Maine budget all summer, and the House and Senate finally voted on a compromise. It ties the Maine estate tax exemption to federal law as of December 31, 2017, meaning it would be $5.6 million for 2018. The bill is headed to the Governor’s desk

See Ashlea Ebeling, States Rebel, Won’t Conform to Trump Estate Tax Cuts, Forbes, August 31, 2018.

Special thanks to Jim Hillhouse (Professional Legal Marketing (PLM, Inc.) for bringing this article to my attention.

Special thanks to Joel C. Dobris (Professor of Law, UC Davis School of Law) for bringing this article to my attention.