Marriage Tax Relief Urged by N.J. Governor

With the tax deadline looming, New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman says Americans pay too much and deserve freedom from the so-called “marriage penalty.”

“Keeping more of your earnings boils down to freedom. Freedom to make choices about what’s important to you, whether it’s college tuition for your child, a new home for your family or saving for your own retirement,” Whitman said in the weekly Republican radio address Saturday.

She criticized the Clinton administration and Democrats for hindering GOP plans to end the marriage penalty that causes 25 million married couples to pay higher taxes than if they were single.

Senate Democrats blocked Republican legislation Thursday that would cut taxes by $248 billion over 10 years for millions of married couples. The bill would eliminate the penalty by raising the standard deduction and expanding the 15% and 28% tax brackets for married couples.

While eliminating the marriage penalty has broad support in both parties, Democrats and Republicans disagree on how to do it and how much of the projected budget surplus it should consume.

Whitman praised the tax cutting efforts of Republican governors, including Michigan’s John Engler and Tommy G. Thompson of Wisconsin.

She also noted that during her time as governor, New Jersey cut taxes 37 times, helping to create 400,000 jobs.