FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 8, 2001
CONTACT: Lisette McSoud Mondello
SENATOR KAY BAILEY HUTCHISON TESTIFIES BEFORE SENATE FINANCE
URGES PANEL TO REPEAL MARRIAGE TAX PENALTY
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) today testified before the Senate Finance Committee on her marriage tax penalty relief bill. "Any changes Congress makes to the tax code affecting married couples should be simple and treat all couples equally," she told the panel.
The marriage tax penalty forces some 21 million couples to pay more in taxes than two single filers with the same household income would pay.
"It's not fair that two people who get married be thrown into a higher tax bracket and pay more in taxes, just because they said "I do." Senator Hutchison said. "These couples are being taxed more because they got married, not because they got a pay raise. That is wrong. It is the wrong incentive in this country and it was never meant to be that way. It's a quirk in the tax code that must be fixed."
Senator Hutchison gave the example of a young engaged couple in Tyler, Texas, who both work at a local grocery store. The woman's annual income is $20,000 a year, on which she supports a 3-year-old. Her fiancé makes $19,000. "When they get married, they will be hit with a marriage penalty of $1,600," Senator Hutchison said. "That's six month's rent in Tyler."
Senator Hutchison was the main Senate sponsor of the marriage penalty bill that was passed twice by the last Congress, but was vetoed both times by President Clinton. On Jan. 22, 2001, she introduced S. 11, a bill whose provisions would take effect for the 2001 tax year. It would increase the standard deduction for married couples filing jointly so that it is twice the size of the standard deduction for individuals. The standard deduction changes annually. Under current law, the deduction is set for 2001 at $4,550 for a single filer and $7,600 for a married couple filing jointly.
Referred to as the "Marriage Tax Penalty Elimination Act of 2001," Senator Hutchison's bill also would widen each tax bracket for married couples filing a joint return to twice the size of the corresponding rate bracket for a single taxpayer. This would increase the lowest bracket (15 percent) in 2001 by roughly $9,000 for married couples, from $45,200 to $54,100.
In her testimony, Senator Hutchison emphasized to the panel members that any changes to the marriage penalty should not add another layer of complication for taxpayers. "Our tax code has, in and of itself, become another tax," Senator Hutchison said. "Marriage penalty relief should not contribute to this already significant burden."
S. 11 has 24 cosponsors, including Majority Leader Trent Lott (R-Miss.), Assistant Majority Leader Don Nickles (R-Okla.), Phil Gramm (R-Texas) and Robert Byrd (D-W.V.).
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