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A mericans spend a lot of time thinking about where to live for tax purposes. But another question gets less attention: Where is the most expensive place in the U.S. to die? My colleague, tax attorney and Forbes senior writer Kelly Phillips Erb, has been exploring this and other important estate-planning questions over the course of this week, and so I want to use today’s note to highlight her good advice.

First up, here’s her state-by-state guide to estate and inheritance taxes and onerous probate fees. As Kelly told me in this Forbes Talks segment, there’s not necessarily one “worst” state in which to pass away, but there are states with more complicated inheritance tax laws than others. Maryland residents, pay especially close attention to this story.

Kelly lost her dad in October and, along with her mom and siblings, has been navigating the often-thorny questions around what to do with old financial records, collectibles, and beloved items. She’s also had to wrangle missing social security survivor benefits for her mother , and like any good writer, she’s using her experience to help inform her coverage. This is her handy breakdown of which receipts, documents and tax forms must be saved , and for how long, to satisfy the IRS, and here you can find a very helpful explainer about what to do with all your parents’ stuff.

As someone who has consistently turned down boxes of ceramic hand-me-downs from my parents and their siblings (Manhattan rentals do not come with free storage space, after all), the guide to handling beloved family items is a story I’ll be bookmarking. It can feel like a betrayal to throw away family collectibles, but as one source told Kelly, “space has value, too.”

P.S: A quick housekeeping note to say that this newsletter (and its author) will be off next week. We’ll return to your inboxes on Thursday, June 4!

Exclusive Forbes Profile: Meet The 25-Year-Old Vying To Become Hollywood’s First AI Movie Mogul

Ex-Google engineer Cecilia Shen cofounded Utopai to crack the code on long-form AI-generated content. And thanks to an investment from NBA legend Carmelo Anthony, the Under 30 alum is now running a billion-dollar studio. It’s an astronomical valuation for a company with revenue that Forbes estimates was less than $50 million in 2025, and has yet to put out a full-length movie or TV show. Still, with projects in the pipeline and strong 2026 projections, the premium price tag announces Utopai as a true competitor in the ongoing Hollywood AI arms race.

This weekend, IndyCar and NASCAR driver Katherine Legge will become the first woman to attempt "The Double,” racing in the Indy 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 races on the same day. Only five drivers in history have attempted to complete both races in one day, and just one has finished both. Legge’s historic attempt comes at a time when women have become increasingly rare in top-level motorsports competitions.

New data from Girl Scouts of the USA gives parents more reason to worry about how their children are using AI: A majority of girls between the ages of 5 and 13 who use voice-assisted AI agents like Siri and Alexa see these tools as friends . Sarah Keating, Girl Scouts’ Vice President of Girl and Volunteer Experience, joined ForbesWomen editor Maggie McGrath to discuss these findings.

Speaking of girls between 5 and 13: How do you prepare the next generation for a workforce that is fundamentally shifting overnight? Tarika Barrett, CEO of Girls Who Code , sat down with Forbes’ Maggie McGrath for the latest episode of C-Suite Unscripted to discuss the reality of the AI revolution, the current political backlash against DEI, and why 50% of women are still leaving the tech industry by age 35.

The aforementioned backlash against workplace diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives is often framed as a return to “meritocracy.” Companies have rolled back programs that support women and underrepresented employees while insisting that hiring and promotions should be based solely on performance and qualifications. But in a new book, The Ambition Penalty: How Corporate Culture Tells Women to Step Up—and Then Pushes Them Down , journalist Stefanie O’Connell argues that meritocracy is a myth that helps keep men in power.

According to a 2025 analysis from the Pew Research Center, 42% of U.S. adults were unpartnered in 2023. Meanwhile, single women are less likely than single men to report actively seeking romantic relationships . The change does not necessarily indicate women have stopped valuing love. Instead, experts suggest many women are reassessing what healthy partnership should provide.

1. Stay composed when you’re caught unaware. Picture this: You’re put on the spot at a company all-hands. Everyone’s eyes turn to you, and suddenly you have to think on your feet. Stumble, and you risk looking disorganized or unprepared. Stay composed , and you signal that you can think clearly under pressure. Use these four strategies to handle surprise questions with poise , and you’ll never feel ambushed again.

2. Protect your career when you’re taking a break. The re-entry penalty for a career break is real: According to a 2021 study by Harvard Business School, 49% of companies eliminate candidates whose resumes include an employment gap of six months or longer. Here are three ways you can protect your own career in the long run when systemic pressures force you to take a pause .

3. Stop caring. Or at least, stop caring about the WRONG things. If you find yourself disengaging from work that previously motivated you, get curious. Ask yourself what exactly stopped mattering and why, and know that there’s a difference between temporary exhaustion and genuine misalignment.

An affordability crisis coupled with rising youth unemployment are fueling a new political movement among Gen Z in India, sparked last week after an Indian political leader referred to young, unemployed people as which of the following?

  1. Sloths
  2. Cockroaches
  3. Rats
  4. Snakes

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