Final answer:
The additional standard deduction for age and blindness is structured to be greater for married taxpayers filing jointly compared to single taxpayers. This is reflective of varying IRS tax brackets based on marital status, and it adjusts for the potential of dual benefits within one household according to U.S. tax law.
Step-by-step explanation:
The student's question refers to the additional standard deduction for age and blindness that U.S. taxpayers can claim when filing their income taxes. It's important to note that these deductions, as well as the tax brackets, vary with marital status and family size.
For example, in 2020 the IRS tax tables for a married person filing jointly began with a 10% tax on all taxable income from $0 to $19,750, and the rates increased progressively with income levels. Single taxpayers have different brackets and rates. As such, generally speaking, the additional standard deductions for age and blindness are indeed greater for married taxpayers filing jointly than for single taxpayers, to accommodate the potential for dual benefits within a single household.
Government programs such as Social Security are also indexed to offer additional protections based on factors like age, reflecting case rulings such as United States v. Windsor, which upheld the rights of same-sex married couples to the same federal benefits as heterosexual couples.