What “Marriage Penalty”? 

On Thursday the House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a bill to eliminate the so-called “marriage penalty.” (Click here to read about the vote.) Although Democrats and Republicans disagree on specifics, the elimination of the tax disparity between singles and married couples is wildly popular among voters. In 1998, Robert McIntyre explained how this disparity is exaggerated through economic sleight-of-hand—and how there is no way to eliminate it and retain the progressive income tax.