There are some States you Shouldn't be caught Dead in

Robert Negele is a 90-year-old retired executive who has lived in Connecticut for almost 40 years. Despite decades of community involvement, including service on corporate and charity boards, he and two of his children who live nearby are seriously considering leaving the state. 

"It's a prime possibility we discuss at Sunday night dinners," Mr. Negele says. 

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A big factor in their deliberations: Connecticut's estate and gift taxes, which tax assets above $2 million per individual at rates as high as 12%. Mr. Negele says some snowbirds at his Stamford retirement home have shifted their tax home to Florida, while others he knows have left the state altogether.

Mr. Negele is far from alone, estate planners say. "State death taxes are considerably more important than they used to be, and we spend a lot of time planning for them," says Beth Kaufman, an estate-tax lawyer at Caplin & Drysdale in Washington, in part because of changes in the federal tax laws. 

Nineteen states and the District of Columbia, home to just over one-third of the U.S. population, levy an estate tax on the assets of people who die or an inheritance tax on heirs receiving assets. Maryland and New Jersey have both, although each allows offsets to prevent double taxation.

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