Political Quotes

“42 million married couples got good news this past week when President Bush signed into law the jobs and economic growth package, legislation that wiped out the marriage tax penalty for 42 million married working couples this year. This is an issue that we have been working so hard over the last several years to address, and that is fairness in the Tax Code affecting married couples. In the case of a husband and wife who are both in the workforce, because they file their taxes jointly, combining their income, in many cases, most cases, all cases, they are pushed into a higher tax bracket. That average married tax penalty for 42 million couples is almost $1,700 a year. Well, thanks to the President's stroke of a pen just a few days ago, the marriage tax penalty for the vast majority of those who suffered, almost all of them, will be eliminated this year. Let me give an example of a married couple in the district that I represent, the south suburbs of Chicago, the town of Joliet, Jose and Magdalena Castillo and their son, Eduardo, and their little daughter, Carolina. They are an example of a typical married couple in Illinois who suffer the marriage tax penalty. In fact, for Jose and Magdalena, they are both construction workers. They are laborers, and they work hard for a living. For them, the marriage tax penalty is about $1,400 each year.”