Final answer:
Without the exact tax table and brackets, it is not possible to calculate Maria Contreras's exact tax amount, but the process involves finding her income level, the base tax amount for her bracket, the amount over the lower bracket threshold, and applying the marginal tax rate to it.
Step-by-step explanation:
To calculate the taxes for Maria Contreras with a taxable income of $53,000, we need to determine the correct tax bracket and method of calculation based upon the provided tax table data. From the given examples, we understand that there are different tax rates for different income ranges and that these rates correspond to clearly defined income brackets. Since the provided examples and data do not specify the exact figures for each bracket that would apply to Maria's income, we must assume that she falls within a similar progressive tax system with predefined brackets and base tax amounts as in the examples.
Without the exact tax bracket data, an exact numerical answer cannot be given. But generally, Maria would:
- Identify her earned income level, which is $53,000.
- Enter the base amount for her income bracket from the tax table.
- Find the amount over the lower threshold of her tax bracket.
- Multiply the amount over by the marginal tax rate (e.g., 25%) that applies to income above that threshold.
- Add the base amount and the result of the multiplication to get her total tax liability.