Absent congressional action, on Jan. 1 the tax rate will rise to 55 percent on estates valued at more than $1 million. The common-sense compromise would have left the exemptions at the 2009 levels of $3.5 million for individuals and $7 million for couples, and the rate at 45 percent. Those are the highest exemptions and lowest rates reached under the Bush plan until this year. The Kyl proposal, however, changes that exemption to cover the first $5 million for individuals and $10 million for couples, and sets a 35 percent rate on the remainder. In other words, for an additional $23 billion on our nation's credit card, the Kyl proposal provides an average tax break of more than $1.5 million to roughly 6,600 estates a year.