Revenue and Incentive Effects of Basis Step-Up at Death: Lessons from the 2010 "Voluntary" Estate Tax Regime

S-Tier
Journal: American Economic Review
Year: 2016
Volume: 106
Issue: 5
Pages: 662-67

Authors (3)

Robert Gordon (not in RePEc) David Joulfaian (Government of the United State...) James Poterba (not in RePEc)

Score contribution per author:

2.681 = (α=2.01 / 3 authors) × 4.0x S-tier

α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count

Abstract

In 2010, the U.S. estate tax expired and executors of wealthy decedents were not required to file estate tax returns. In the absence of the estate tax, beneficiaries received assets with carryover rather than stepped-up basis. Unrealized capital gains accounted for 44 percent of the fair market value of non-cash assets in estates that chose the carryover basis regime, and an even higher percentage for some asset categories. Many of the largest gains were on assets that had been held for at least two decades.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:aea:aecrev:v:106:y:2016:i:5:p:662-67
Journal Field
General
Author Count
3
Added to Database
2026-01-25