[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 132 (Monday, September 28, 1998)]
[House]
[Page H9092]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page H9092]]
   WE CAN SAVE SOCIAL SECURITY AND ELIMINATE THE MARRIAGE TAX PENALTY

  (Mr. WELLER asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. WELLER. Mr. Speaker, in the next 2 weeks, we have a lot to do, 
and of course we want to do the people's business.
  This past weekend this House of Representatives did the right thing. 
We set aside $1.4 trillion in surplus tax revenue for the effort to 
save Social Security, and we passed legislation which will eliminate 
the marriage tax personality.
  I have often asked in the well of this House over the last year, is 
it right, is it fair that under our current Tax Code, 28 million 
married working couples pay higher taxes, just because they are 
married.
  Well, we have addressed that. On Saturday we passed and sent to the 
Senate legislation whose centerpiece eliminates the marriage tax 
penalty for the majority of those who suffer. In fact, for 28 million 
couples they will see an extra $240, enough money for a car payment in 
extra take-home pay because of lower taxes.
  Now, those who opposed it, particularly those on the Democratic side 
of the aisle, claim somehow that our effort to eliminate the marriage 
tax penalty hurts the Social Security trust fund.
  Now, on the Committee on Ways and Means, which I am proud to be a 
member of, we asked a representative of the Social Security 
Administration, Judy Chesser, the Deputy Commissioner of the Office of 
Legislation and Congressional Affairs, if this tax cut to eliminate the 
marriage tax penalty impacts Social Security. She gave us a simple 
answer: No.
  Let us save Social Security. Let us eliminate the marriage tax 
penalty.

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