But the new deduction would be subject to its own set of limits. The credit would add complexity to the code by piling a deduction on top of already complex HOPE and lifetime learning credit rules. Under the Senate Finance bill, the deduction is slated to expire at the end of 2005. Uncertainty about its extension to later years adds further complexity. After years of ranting and raving about the necessity of repealing so-called marriage penalties in the code, the Senate Finance Committee has postponed the bulk of its marriage penalty relief until after 2005.
Actions speak louder than words.
Obviously marriage penalty relief is not as high a priority as rhetoric led one to believe. It is hard to be critical of the inclusion of these provisions in the Senate Finance bill. It is the right policy. They have been high on the lists of ideas for simplifying the tax code, including the list recently released by the Joint Committee on Taxation. What is so disappointing about the Senate Finance bill is that its relief provisions are not effective until 2009.