mr. speaker , i strongly support h.r. 8 , the death tax repeal permanency act of 2005 , and encourage my colleagues to pass this important legislation . 
this vital legislation will permanently repeal the estate tax , a tax that is unjust , inefficient , and harmful to small businesses , the backbone of our economy . 
repeal of the death tax will create a system that is more equitable and more productive for our economy . 
the death tax is a burden on our economy that costs the country between 170 , 000 and 250 , 000 jobs every year . 
in louisiana , our family-owned farms have been faced with decreasing profitability and in many instances the death tax is an additional burden that they can not carry ; this tax is a leading cause of the dissolution for thousands of family-run businesses across the country . 
it also diverts resources from investment in capital , slowing research and development at a time when our country is facing growing competition around the world . 
we can not afford to continue discouraging productivity and innovation . 
furthermore , the death tax is inefficient . 
since the 1930 's , revenue from the tax has fallen steadily as a percentage of total federal revenue . 
compliance costs each year can be almost as high as the tax itself , around $ 22 billion in 2003 ; thus every dollar raised by the death tax is $ 2 that could have been invested in capital and new jobs . 
the economic damage ofthe death tax is reason enough for its repeal , but it is also fundamentally unjust . 
the rate of taxation is as high as 47 % , and this is in addition to the taxes that were already paid on the assets subject to this tax . 
the death tax also discourages hard work and savings and instead encourages large-scale consumption . 
at a time when we should and need to be encouraging individuals to save for their future , we can not continue to send this mixed message . 
by repealing the death tax we will create a tax policy that is more efficient , more equitable and more productive for our economy . 
i urge congress to act today to permanently repeal the death tax and ensure that our future generations will be able to carry on the heritage of our forefathers . 
