Question

Many people have argued that an income tax should be​ "marriage neutral," that​ is, two people should pay the same total tax whether they are married or they are single. Suppose Amanda earns​ nothing, Ben earns​ $60,000, and Cathy and Dylan each earn​ $30,000. They are all single. Amanda pays no tax because she has no income. If they all live in a country that has a progressive income​ tax, which will be​ higher: the tax that Ben pays or the sum of the taxes Cathy and Dylan​ pay?

Answer 1

Ben would pay more in taxes.

Step-by-step explanation:

A progressive income tax increases the tax rate as the taxpayer earns more money.

In this case, Ben would be taxed as earnings $60,000 which is probably a much higher tax rate than the applicable one for $30,000. If we use the current tax brackets for 2020, Ben would fall under the 22% tax bracket while both Cathy and Dylan would fall under the 12% tax bracket. Obviously Ben would pay much more in taxes.