Last week the Senate passed a fiscal 2010 budget resolution that includes an amendment that would increase the federal estate tax exemption to $5 million, indexed for inflation, and cap the maximum estate tax bracket at 35%.

Full Text:

April 2, 2009

At the appropriate place in title II, insert the following:

SEC. _____. DEFICIT-NEUTRAL RESERVE FUND FOR ESTATE TAX RELIEF.

The Chairman of the Senate Committee on the Budget may revise the allocations of a committee or committees, aggregates, and other appropriate levels and limits in this resolution for one or more bills, joint resolutions, amendments, motions, or conference reports that would provide for estate tax reform legislation establishing --

(1) an estate tax exemption level of $5,000,000, indexed for inflation,

(2) a maximum estate tax rate of 35 percent,

(3) a reunification of the estate and gift credits, and

(4) portability of exemption between spouses, and provided that such legislation would not increase the deficit over either the period of the total of fiscal years 2009 through 2014 or the period of the total of fiscal years 2009 through 2019.