This is the one provision in the legislation that provides help to low-income married families. For a married couple both working full time at the minimum wage, this provision would alleviate about one-third of their marriage tax penalty. The Senate Finance Committee recently adopted a similar proposal as part of their broader plan on Marriage Penalty Tax Relief. However, increases in the EITC represent only a very small part of the cost of marriage penalty tax relief legislation. According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, the EITC accounts for just four percent of the annual cost when all the provisions of the legislation are fully phased in.
Some married couples receive marriage bonuses.
However, these plans only include one of the four provisions contained in the President's plan which expands the EITC in other ways. There are eleven state EITCs. OR, and RI have adopted non-refundable EITCs. States can choose to use excess TANF funds for this purpose. The ELCA social statement on economic life, Sufficient, Sustainable Livelihood for All, says that outrage over the plight of people living in poverty is a theme throughout the Bible.