Estate of Rountree

141 Cal.App.3d 976 (1983) 192 Cal. Rptr. 152 Estate of BERTHA E. ROUNTREE, Deceased.

KENNETH CORY, as State Controller, Petitioner and Respondent,

v.

EDWARD T. ROUNTREE, Objector and Appellant.

Docket No. AO15209. Court of Appeals of California, First District, Division Four.

January 26, 1983. [977] COUNSEL

Stephen N. Wyckoff and Wyckoff, Miller, Ritchey, Shanle & Barthel for Objector and Appellant.

[978] Myron Siedorf, Edwin Rosenthal, William F. Seeley and Donald C. McKenzie for Petitioner and Respondent.

OPINION

POCHE, J.

Edward T. Rountree appeals from an order overruling his objections to the report of the inheritance tax referee and fixing the amount of inheritance tax due the State of California in the sum of $10,931.46. We affirm.

Facts

Bertha Rountree died testate on August 13, 1980, leaving her entire estate to her husband Edward. The report of the inheritance tax referee filed December 2, 1980, reflected that after certain exemptions and deductions, the taxable estate was $145,313.98, and the amount of inheritance tax due thereon was $10,931.46. Appellant objected on the ground that no inheritance taxes were due as a result of the enactment of Assembly Bill No. 2092. (Stats. 1980, ch. 634, §§ 1-46, pp. 1737-1760.) That statute materially changed the inheritance and gift tax laws in California and specifically exempted from inheritance taxation property transferred to a surviving spouse. (See Rev. & Tax. Code, § 13805, amended by Stats. 1980, ch. 634, § 15, p. 1747.)[1] The superior court, concluding that the operative date for the total exclusion was January 1, 1981, overruled appellant's objection.