Max Baucus: “this is essentially what I call a ``more stimulus now'' amendment. It has two provisions. One, it accelerates the year…”

“this is essentially what I call a ``more stimulus now'' amendment. It has two provisions. One, it accelerates the year in which the dividend exclusion is effective. Under the committee bill, the dividend exclusion does not come into effect until 2004, which basically means most taxpayers are not going to receive the benefit until 2005 when they file their tax returns. All this takes effect in 2003 in my amendment, as well as the 10 percent. We are going to stimulate the economy. In addition, there is acceleration of the child tax credit. The amendment provides the full $400 be sent to those who qualify for the additional child tax credit, and that is based on the 2002 returns. If they qualify in 2002, they are entitled to the full $400 check in 2003. To avoid the problem we faced in the 2001 bill, where sometimes they got $300 and sometimes not, this will speed that up.”