Affected Maryland Tax	2014 Legislative Proposal Details
Personal Income Tax	There are two bills in the House Ways and Means Committee that propose to reduce residents' personal income tax rates. One, titled the Income Tax Relief Act of 2014 (HB326), would reduce the income tax rates by 10 percent, phased in over three tax years. The other (HB328) proposes a flat tax rate of 3.5 percent to all individuals whose annual income exceeds $30,000.
Corporate Income Tax	There are three bills circulating through both the House Ways and Means and Senate Budget and Taxation committees (HB170/SB384, HB199/SB8, HB348/SB366), as well as an additional three in the House (HB330, HB339, HB457), that propose a reduction in the corporate income tax rate, which is currently 8.25 percent, to rates between 4 percent and 7 percent over varying periods of time.
Sales and Use Tax	One bill is pending in the House Ways and Means and Senate Budget and Taxation committees (HB347/SB365) that would lower the state's sales tax rate from 6 percent to 5 percent, which was the pre-2007 rate.
Estate Tax	Two bills are circulating within the House Ways and Means and Senate Budget and Taxation committees (HB739/SB602, HB188/SB155) as well as two additional in the Senate (SB324, SB163) and one in the House (HB186) that would raise the threshold at which the state's estate tax kicks in. In Maryland, the estate tax is currently imposed on the transfer of a property worth a minimum of $1 million when the estate's owner dies. On the federal level, the tax doesn't apply until the estate is worth $5.34 million, which is indexed to inflation.
Inheritance Tax	The Senate Budget and Taxation Committee heard one bill (SB244) to repeal the state's inheritance tax, and the House Ways and Means Committee heard a different bill (HB184) to repeal both the estate and inheritance taxes. The inheritance tax is similar to the estate tax, except it is imposed on the clear value of property that passes from a decedent to some beneficiaries. The tax is levied on property that passes under a will, the interstate laws of succession, and property that passes under a trust, deed, joint ownership, or otherwise.