Permanently repeal the estate tax. Lankford co-sponsored Death Tax Repeal Act
James Lankford will support repeal of the federal estate tax.
Occurrences
Evidence
OnTheIssues lists Lankford under Tax Reform as supporting: "Replace income tax & estate tax with 23% sales tax" and "Permanently repeal the estate tax."
The Senate roll call for H.R. 1, as amended, shows Vote Number 372, Vote Result: Bill Passed, and lists "Lankford (R-OK), Yea."
Congress.gov states H.R.1 became Public Law No. 119-21 on 07/04/2025. The CRS summary says Sec. 70106 "increases the base estate tax, gift tax, and generation-skipping transfer tax exemption amount after 2025 to $15 million (from $5 million), adjusted for inflation."
Assessments
The promise was to support repeal of the federal estate tax, not necessarily to secure full repeal. The evidence shows Lankford publicly supported permanent estate-tax repeal during his federal political career, including issue-position records listing support for permanently repealing the estate tax and replacing the estate tax through broader tax reform. Later, he also voted for H.R. 1 in 2025, which reduced the estate-tax burden by raising exemptions, though it did not repeal the tax. Because the promised action was support, the available record is enough for full delivery, with the later 2025 law serving as additional partial policy advancement rather than the basis for delivery.