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Earned Income Tax Credit Imposes Marriage Penalty on Low-Income Couples
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[Dayton Daily News] The president's 2003 tax proposals include accelerating the so-called "marriage penalty" relief for middle- and upper-class married couples, rather than phasing in the change over a decade. Yet, for the largest source of cash assistance to low-income working familiesthe Earned Income Tax Creditthe administration has elected to ignore quicker remedies to the marriage penalty. While the tax credit is a vital mechanism for helping the working poor escape poverty, it imposes substantial marriage penalties on low-income couples.