Proposed Valuation Discount Regulations Under Section 2704
This week the Treasury pulled proposed regulations under Code Section 2704 that would have virtually eliminated valuation discounts for family limited partnerships. https://www.journalofaccountancy.com/news/2017/oct/treasury-will-pull-sec-2704-and-other-burdensome-rules-201717601.html
This was not surprise, as a prior blog post noted. So there is a window that is wide open for discount planning, and this planning will be useful whether or not the estate tax is repealed. This is because even if there is repeal (i) it will be done through reconciliation, meaning the estate tax very likely will reappear in ten years and (ii) the gift tax will remain.
Republican Opposition to Estate Tax Repeal Emerges
Reports are emerging that several Republicans oppose elimination of the estate tax. http://www.foxbusiness.com/features/2017/10/05/senate-gop-hits-resistance-on-estate-tax-repeal-from-republicans.html In addition, there are also reports that the Trump administration is thinking of removing it from the tax reform package. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-tax-estate/white-house-weighs-abandoning-estate-tax-repeal-in-republican-tax-push-idUSKCN1BU2YS Regardless, the path to tax reform is a complicated one and most experts do not think it is possible to get a bill to the President by the end of the year.