Millionaire and billionaire Dagbloggers take note: if you die before Dec. 31st, 2010, as Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyoming) claims some of her constituents may do to avoid taxes, you can RIP knowing Uncle Sam did not get one cent of your hard earned fortunes, your designated heirs got it all. For the rich not dying this year an estate tax calculator may help determine your obligation under the most recent estate tax rate in 2009 law. While the long term unemployed lose their benefits, while the two wars started by George W. Bush continue to add billions to the nation's debt, the question of where the estate tax will go in 2011 is the big topic, and is on the docket for the lame duck session this December, in Washington, DC.

The 2009 estate tax, which was 45% of the amount over $3.5 million (for couples $7 million) was suspended in 2010, so billionaires like George Steinbrenner, who died at age 80 in July, 2010, avoided tax on his estate rumored to be $1.14 billion.  His heirs were able to bank the entire fortune. It is estimated the GOP/George Bush legislation from 2001 which first reduced the estate tax, year by year, then suspended the estate tax completely in 2010, cost the government over $14 billion in 2009 alone.

If Obama and the GOP do not reach a deal on the income tax cuts initiated by Bush in 2001, which included the estate tax cuts, the estate tax will return to previous 2001 levels in 2011, which was a 55% tax on estates of more than $1 million. Return to that rate, even with the explosion of federal debt since 2001, is not on the table, even though it would levy no tax on over 98.5% of estates.

The GOP Senate leader Mitch McConnell, Republican Senator Kyl and DINO Blanche Lincoln (recently voted out of office) are purported to be holding out for an estate tax of 35% for amounts over $5 million. This would affect only 0.14% of estates. Of course, many with net worth over that figure are able to set up trusts or other mechanisms to avoid most of the tax.

Jim DeMint supports total repeal of the estate tax.

Reid and the Democrats say they back a 45% rate for fortunes over $3.5 million ($7 million couples), which would be the same as the 2009 rate which affected 0.25% of estates. this would raise $18.1 billion in 2011. A return to the 2001 rates (55% over $1 million) would raise $34.4 billion in 2011 and affect 1.45% of estates.

Reducing or eliminating the federal estate tax may also serve to reduce taxes collected by many states which tie their tax to federal taxes.

So, our federal government, the Democrats, the Old Breed of Republicans (Lugar and..?), the New Breed of Conservative Republicans, the Teabagger Deficit Hawks, the Independents, the socialists, the brave and the craven, the bought and the sold out, will be haggling over the tax rates to be paid by 0.11% (or 0.25%-Dems, minus the 0.14%-GOP) of those who have departed the greatest nation on earth, and who were too busy, too rich, too negligent, or too patriotic or preoccupied (or who failed to die in 2010) to come up with a scheme to avoid taxes altogeher.

Robert Reich calls it "National Fiscal Hypocrisy Week".