higher Massachusetts estate taxes because of the state’s efforts to retain the ‘death tax’ even as the federal government moves to eliminate its levy. … The change in the state’s death tax, which takes effect Jan. 1, initially affects estates worth more than $700,000, according to the Revenue Department. It’s that level that is the key difference between the old and new rules, because $700,000 is below the federal standard, meaning that estates that may be exempt from the federal tax will still owe the state. Under the old rules, the state and federal exemptions were the same. The average taxable estate could end up paying tens of thousands of dollars in additional charges under the new rules, which break the link between the state and the federal tax.” (Charles A. Jaffe, “Residents Face Higher Estate Taxes,” The Boston Globe, 11/15/02)
Change In Estate Tax Law Meant $30 Million To $40 Million In Higher Taxes Each Year. “The Massachusetts Department of Revenue estimates that a rule change – made as part of last summer’s budget bill – will mean an additional $30 million to $40 million in estate tax revenues will flow into state coffers during fiscal 2004, the first full year in which the new rules are in play.” (Charles A. Jaffe, “Residents Face Higher Estate Taxes,” The Boston Globe, 11/15/02)
Romney Took “No Position” On Estate Tax Issue. “In Massachusetts, the move was made as part of the budget bill passed last summer, but the new rules were not issued until late October. Governor-elect Mitt Romney disagreed with the tax and budget approach taken by the Legislature, but a spokesman for his office said he has no position on the estate tax issue.” (Charles A. Jaffe, “Residents Face Higher Estate Taxes,” The Boston Globe, 11/15/02)
Rules Change “Will Keep State Estate Tax Revenues Flowing And Growing.” “The change will keep state estate tax revenues flowing and growing. During fiscal 2003, which began July 1, the DOR expects to collect $125 million in estate tax revenues; that will increase to as much as $165 million in fiscal 2004 – the first full year under the new rules – and go up to $190 million by fiscal 2006.” (Charles A. Jaffe, “Residents Face Higher Estate Taxes,” The Boston Globe, 11/15/02)
Salem Tax Attorney Paul Bernstein: “People who have done estate planning need to prepare for this change, or they’ll be caught with an unpleasant surprise, owing taxes when they thought they were protected …” (Charles A. Jaffe, “Residents Face Higher Estate Taxes,” The Boston Globe, 11/15/02)
Boston Estate Tax Planning Attorney Stephen Ziobrowski Said Rules Change Could Lead To Massachusetts Residents Fleeing State To Avoid Estate Tax. “‘You don’t see much advice suggesting people leave Massachusetts anymore,’ said Ziobrowski, ‘but maybe attorneys will just re-draft those old letters and suggest that their clients move to Florida. … That’s where people used to go to avoid Massachusetts’s estate tax, and it may be what they start doing again.’” (Charles A. Jaffe, “Residents Face Higher Estate Taxes,” The Boston Globe, 11/15/02) As Governor, Romney Signed Into Law 50% Increase In State Cremation Fee, Called By Some A “New Hidden Tax On The Dead” Romney Signed “Hidden Tax On The Dead” Into Law, Raising State Fee For Cremation Services By 50%. “The state has quietly increased the fee for cremations by 50 percent to raise money for the embattled Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, prompting outrage among funeral providers over a ‘new hidden tax on the dead.’ … Under the new law, passed by the Legislature and signed by Gov. Mitt Romney, the current fee of $50 – which was being paid directly to medical examiners when they approved bodies for cremation – will go up to $75. The fee could go up again at the discretion of the Romney administration.” (Tom Mashberg, “Cremation Fee Increase Called ‘Tax On The Dead,’” Boston Herald, 1/21/04)
“[A]ny Body That Is Cremated Must First Be Cleared By A Medical Examiner, Which Carries A $75 Fee.” (Jack Dew, “The Final Price,” The Berkshire Eagle, 3/25/07)
Boston Herald Questioned Romney’s Obsession With Fee Increases In Light Of Cremation Fee Hike. “Gov. Mitt Romney is coming perilously close to deserving the reputation of a politician who’ll slap a fee on anything that moves – and sometimes that which doesn’t move. Such is the case with the administration’s new higher fee for cremation.” (Editorial, “Here A Fee, There A Fee,” Boston Herald, 1/23/04)
Herald: Cremation Fee “Makes The Disguised Tax Argument Ever Easier To Make.” “The cremation fee increase, coming on top of some $500 million in fees supported by the governor and Legislature last year, makes the disguised tax argument ever easier to make. We hope Romney’s budget proposal released next week doesn’t add fuel to this fire.” (Editorial, “Here A Fee, There A Fee,” Boston Herald, 1/23/04)
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