08/14/06 Death tax legislation

If a bill to combine a permanent estate tax reduction with an increase in the minimum wage comes before the Senate next month what will happen? Most likely it will receive 58 votes, one more than the 57 who supported the measure a couple of weeks ago. But 58 is still two shy of the 60 needed to invoke cloture or end a filibuster. American Farm Bureau tax specialist Pat Wolff says Farm Bureau made an all out push for passage last month but has no plans to fight the uphill battle this time around. WOLFF "It's hard to image what it might take to convince those people to vote yes." The Senate bill has three parts; death tax relief, a minimum wage hike and extension of expiring tax breaks. Wolff says there are some who want to separate the three. WOLFF "There will be a tremendous push to pass those tax extensions. The question is whether the other things go with them or whether they'll just do the tax provisions that are popular." Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist does have the rest of the month of August to secure the two votes he needs to get the estate tax reduction through the Senate. Unfortunately, Wolff says the last one or two votes are always the hardest to get. Voice of Idaho Agriculture Bill Scott