Marriage penalty, what marriage penalty
James Edward Maule, from the Villanova School of Law, posts a great review of exactly how Congress “abolished” the marriage penalty with recent legislation, and opens up a window on why every time Congress acts to “fix” the tax code, the result is more complexity, more confusion, in short chaos.
UPDATE:
On this subject, Paul L. Caron, from the Univ. of Cincinnati College of Law, points to a study by the Tax Foundation regarding the pending expiration of the marriage penalty relief provision (most of the recent federal tax reforms were “sunsetted” i.e. set to expire, over the 4 to 10 years following 2001. Once the revision expire, the old law goes back into effect (unless Congress passes the President’s initiative to make the changes permanent)). Prof. Caron notes:
They conclude that the failure to enact the pending legislation would have the biggest impact on lower-income couples. For example:
Income Range…………..% Increase in Tax Burden If No Marriage Penalty Relief
$10,000-$15,000……………..563%
$15,000-$20,000………………..69%
$20,000-$25,000………………..21%
