[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 2]
[House]
[Page 1624]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                  ELIMINATION OF MARRIAGE TAX PENALTY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mrs. Biggert). Under the Speaker's announced 
policy of January 19, 1999, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Weller) is 
recognized during morning hour debates for 5 minutes.
  Mr. WELLER. Madam Speaker, today is a big day. The House Committee on 
Ways and Means is going to act on another item on our agenda, an issue 
of fairness; and today, in the House Committee on Ways and Means, we 
are going to move forward on an item on the Republican agenda which 
helps 800,000 senior citizens, senior citizens over the age of 65, who 
because they need to work or want to work, they want to be active 
longer, or maybe they have two pensions, had their Social Security 
benefits taxed away. And that is called the earnings limit, or the 
earnings penalty.
  Today we are going to pass legislation which will wipe out that 
unfair quirk in Federal law which taxes away two-thirds of the Social 
Security benefits of 800,000 senior citizen who happen to earn more 
than $17,000 a year.
  We can all think of seniors that we know in our local communities who 
have to work, maybe they are waitresses, maybe they work or have a 
little hobby or they set aside some money and saved and invested well 
that they are making more than $17,000 a year, and today they are 
punished; they are penalized.
  We are going to pass legislation which deserves bipartisan support 
which wipes out the earnings limit for 800,000 senior citizens. That is 
a big victory as we work to bring about fairness to every American.
  Today I want to talk about another issue of fairness, an issue which 
this House has voted to address, an issue which responds to a 
fundamental question of fairness, the difference between right and 
wrong; and that is, is it right, is it fair that under our Tax Code 25 
million married working couples on average pay $1,400 more in higher 
taxes just because they are married?
  Is it right that a working married couple with an identical income, 
identical circumstances, pays higher taxes than a couple that lives 
together outside of marriage with identical circumstances? Of course 
not. It is wrong; it is unfair that under our Tax Code a working 
married couple pays more in taxes just because they are married.
  I want to introduce to my colleagues in the House Shad and Michelle 
Hallihan, two public school teachers from Joliet, Illinois. Shad and 
Michelle, of course, teach public school; they just had a little baby, 
a young couple, a nice couple. They suffer the marriage tax penalty 
just because they are married.
  They have a combined income of about $62,000. They are two public 
school teachers supposed to have identical incomes of about $30,000 
each. They are middle class. Well, they pay the average marriage tax 
penalty.
  Michelle pointed out to me, she said, Congressman, as you work to 
eliminate that marriage tax penalty, let your colleagues in the 
Congress know that that marriage tax penalty that the Hallihans pay 
would buy about 4,000 diapers for their newborn child.
  It is real money for real people. And for other families in Joliet, 
Illinois, the hometown of Michelle and Shad Hallihan, that $1,400, the 
average marriage tax penalty, is 1 year's tuition at Joliet Junior 
College or a local community college. It is 3 months' of day-care at a 
local childcare center in the south suburbs of Chicago. It is 7 months' 
worth of car payments. It is a washer and a dryer for couples like 
Michelle and Shad. And they are a beautiful couple. They are young.
  But the marriage tax penalty is suffered by the elderly, as well. We 
have all heard the stories about elderly couples who get divorced 
because they can save money. Well, the marriage tax penalty punishes 
young and old just because they are married. And this House has done 
something about that. We have been working over the last several years 
to wipe out the marriage tax penalty. And 230 Members of this House 
joined together to cosponsor H.R. 6, the Marriage Tax Elimination Act, 
legislation which wipes out the marriage tax penalty for couples like 
Michelle and Shad Hallihan.
  I am proud to say that this House voted, in fact 48 Democrats joined 
with every House Republican to vote to wipe out the marriage tax 
penalty, benefiting 25 million married, working couples who suffer the 
marriage tax penalty.
  Our legislation will essentially wipe out the marriage tax penalty 
for Shad and Michelle Hallihan. We do it in several ways. It has three 
key components. It is legislation designed to help everybody who 
suffers the marriage tax penalty, and we do it in three approaches.
  One is, first we help the working poor. Those who participate in the 
earned income credit, which helps those working poor families, 
particularly with children, well, there is a marriage penalty and we 
adjust the income threshold so that working, married couples who 
participate in earned income credit will see their marriage penalty 
eliminated.
  Let us remember that the biggest part of the marriage tax penalty is 
caused when we have a husband and wife like Shad and Michelle Hallihan, 
who, because they are married, they file jointly, they combine their 
income. We eliminate the marriage tax penalty by widening the 15 
percent tax bracket as well as doubling the standard deduction.
  The Senate needs to act. I hope the Senate will join us and move in a 
quick way, a timely way, and in a bipartisan way to join us in wiping 
out the marriage tax penalty.

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