Resolved, There is hereby established a special commission pursuant to section 2A of chapter 4 of the General Laws to study the estate tax.  The commission shall consist of 11 members: the house and senate chairs of the joint committee on revenue, who shall serve as co-chairs of the commission; the minority leader of the house of representatives, or a designee; the minority leader of the senate, or a designee; the secretary of administration and finance, or a designee ; and 6 members to be appointed by the governor, 1 of whom shall be a representative of the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center; 1 of whom shall be a representative of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation; 2 of whom shall be individuals with expertise in estate tax; and 2 of whom shall be individuals with expertise in economics or tax policy.

The commission shall study the effects of the estate tax on economic growth and on individuals moving out of state or changing their residence to out of state for tax purposes; potential changes to the estate tax, including, but not limited to, repealing the current  1 million dollar exclusion amount and establishing an exemption; potential changes in revenue collected by the commonwealth as a result of changes to the estate tax; and empirical data on estate taxes in other states.

The commission shall submit a report of its findings along with any recommendations to the joint committee on revenue and the clerks of the house of representatives and the senate not later than 6 months after the first meeting of the commission.