End the Welfare Marriage Penalty

In a recent Wall Street Journal op-ed, US Senator Sam Brownback and President of the Institute for American Values David Blankenhorn proposed an end to the federal government’s marriage tax. They say the married couples are forced to pay the government 20% of their income. That means a married couple with earned income of $60,000 gives Uncle Sam about $12,000 for the privilege of being married.

Okay, there is something being left out. The $60,000 figure may be a little too high. The authors acknowledge that Congress has made substantial progress in reducing the marriage tax on married couples with middle to upper incomes. It is the marriage tax on couples who receive welfare benefits that Brownback and Blankenhorn want to eliminate. They say,

For most couples on welfare, getting married is among the more expensive decisions they will face as newlyweds, because saying “I do” will reduce the benefits they receive, on average, by 10% to 20% of their total income.

This is the word on the street. It may be contributing prevalent practice of shaking up and unwed parenting among the poor.

Why should we all care about eliminating the marriage penalty tax on the poor. One obvious reason is to eliminate the disincentive for couple to share the marriage life and be responsible for their children.

A wide range of studies have found that children whose parents are married are significantly less likely to use drugs, have emotional problems, drop out of school, or get into trouble with the law. Studies also consistently find that married adults tend to be happier, healthier and ultimately wealthier than their unmarried but otherwise similarly situated peers, say the authors.

By removing disincentives for marriage, we are giving them a strong incentive not to take advantage of an institution that would likely help them lift themselves out of poverty [and welfare] over time.”

What then is Brownback and Blankenhorn proposal? Stop making the poor pay for being married. The first step is to establish pilot programs in at least 5 low-income communities across the nation to test their proposal. With a community-wide support program encouraging marriage among the poor, this program just might work. If results from the pilot programs evidence the expected results of increased marriages and income, the next step would be to implement the program nationwide.