So-called 'death tax' to perish at year's end

Ohio"s estate tax was a favorite target for Gov. John Kasich, who promised during his campaign to eliminate it.
   
He labeled it as a "death tax" that was driving successful people from the state to preserve their assets. On the campaign trail he frequently would tell the crowd that if they wanted to find a retired successful Ohio entrepreneur they should look in Naples, Fla.
   
"Kill the death tax. You know the death tax, all these people who are successful, they're moving to Florida," he told WSYX Channel 6 in Columbus after announcing his candidacy. "Florida doesn't have a death tax. So we've got to get rid of that so the entrepreneurs, the job creators, stay."
   
The tax, which hits the 7 percent of estates in Ohio that are valued over $338,333, funnels about $250 million a year to local governments and $60 million to state coffers.
   
Kasich signed a 3,262-page budget document on June 30 in a ceremony at the Statehouse. It took effect a few hours later at midnight. Provisions in the bill abolish the estate tax effective Jan. 1, 2013.
   
Based on that action, we move the Kasich-O-Meter to Promise Kept.