Bess, a widow, died in October 2022. Her gross estate, which totaled $12.5 million, included a $100,000 life insurance policy on her life that she gave away in 2019. The taxable gift that arose from giving away the policy was $15,000. In December 2017, Bess made a $740,000 taxable gift of stock whose value increased to $790,000 by the time Bess died. She owed debts of $80,000 at the time of her death.
a. What was her estate tax base?
b. What unified credit could her estate claim?