[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 7 (Wednesday, February 2, 2000)]
[House]
[Pages H167-H168]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          MARRIAGE TAX PENALTY

  (Mr. KNOLLENBERG asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. KNOLLENBERG. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to remind my colleagues of 
the fact that the Committee on Ways and Means is marking up marriage 
penalty relief and also to talk about the negative impact of the 
marriage penalty.
  Under current law, 21 million couples are required to pay on average 
an additional $1,400 a year in taxes simply because they are married. 
The marriage penalty is a ridiculous policy that is undermining the 
institution of marriage and making it harder for working families to 
get ahead.
  Mr. Speaker, the marriage penalty is especially hard on the family's 
second wage earner, often the wife's salary, because their income is 
taxed at higher marginal rates. In response to these higher rates, many 
people, especially the second earners, choose not to work or to work 
less. This not only makes these couples worse off because of their 
decreased income, because it also reduces the national output. In 
short, the marriage penalty punishes success.

[[Page H168]]

  I commend the leadership for making the marriage penalty relief a top 
priority, and I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to pass 
this common-sense legislation.

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