The socially conservative Family Research Council denounced the Senate-passed fiscal cliff agreement for its lack of “spending cuts or entitlement reform” — and said it effectively penalizes married couples by leaving joint tax filers with less than twice the standard deduction for individuals.
FRC’s statement Tuesday:
“To make matters worse, President Obama’s fiscal cliff deal would impose a marriage penalty on many American families. For real, long term solutions to our nation’s fiscal problems, the government should not be working to further dissuade couples from getting married.
“Research out of Family Research Council’s Marriage and Religion Research Institute routinely shows that married couples with children create the most capital and generate the most income on average. This economic activity leads to higher revenue for government and more capital for economic expansion. Why then would we penalize marriage? We should be encouraging family formation, not penalizing it.
