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 Home > News & Policies > October 2004

For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
October 4, 2004

Fact Sheet: President Bush Signs Tax Relief Bill Benefiting Millions of American Families

Today's Presidential Action

  • President Bush today signed into law H.R. 1308, the Working Families Tax Relief Act of 2004, which extends key parts of his tax relief plan set to expire next year . Due to the President's actions today, a family of four with an income of $40,000 will save more than $900 on their taxes next year. Overall, 94 million Americans will have a lower tax bill next year, including 70 million women and 38 million families with children. This legislation:

    • Extends the full marriage penalty relief to couples who are unfairly taxed just because they are married;
    • Lessens the tax burden of lower-income Americans by ensuring the full benefits of the 10% percent tax bracket;
    • Helps working moms and dads by ensuring that the full $1,000 per child tax credit is available through 2010;
    • Supports military men and women living in combat zones by providing nearly $200 million of assistance in the form of higher child credit refunds and earned income tax credits;
    • Protects middle-class taxpayers from the Alternative Minimum Tax by exempting from it the first $58,000 of a married couple's income. Without this AMT relief, taxpayers would be saddled with an extra $23 billion AMT levy through 2005; and
    • S implifies the tax code for families who qualify for the child tax credit, the Earned Income Tax Credit, the dependent care credit, the dependent exemption for children, and those who file as the head-of-household.

  • If Congress had not acted when it did, failure to extend these tax cuts permanently would have raised taxes on American taxpayers in future years:

    • In 2005, the $1,000 child credit would have fallen to $700;
    • A family of four earning $40,000 would have seen their tax burden increase by $913 next year; and
    • In 2005, 94 million taxpayers would have faced, on average, a tax increase of $538;

  • President's Bush's tax relief was the right action at the right time for our economy. His tax relief has helped millions of families and businesses and continues to drive job creation.

    • Job creation is accelerating , with nearly 1.7 million jobs created since last August and 12 straight months of job gains . At 5.4% the unemployment rate is below its average for the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s.
    • America 's standard of living is on the rise. Real after-tax income is up by more than 10% since December 2000 – substantially better than the comparable time period in the previous business cycle. The President's tax relief is an important component of that increase.
    • The national homeownership rate, in the second quarter of 2004, was at an all time high of 69.2 percent. Minority homeownership set a new record of 51% in the second quarter and is up 2.1 percentage points from a year ago.

More to Do: The President's Plan to Create More Jobs, Security, and Opportunity in a Growing Economy

While the President's tax cuts are creating jobs and continuing to strengthen the economy, there is still more to do so that every American who wants a job can find one. To create jobs, America must remain the best place in the world to do business. The President's six-point plan:

    • Allows families to plan for the future by making tax relief permanent.
    • Encourages investment and expansion by restraining Federal spending and reducing regulation.
    • Makes our country less dependent on foreign sources of energy through a comprehensive national energy policy.
    • Expands trade and levels the playing field to sell American goods and services across the globe.
    • Protects small business owners and workers from the explosion of frivolous lawsuits that threaten jobs across America.
    • Lowers the cost of health care for small businesses and working families through Association Health Plans, tax-free Health Savings Accounts, tax credits for employer contributions to Health Savings Accounts, and Medical Liability Reform.
  • To keep our economy growing, we must reform the tax code to make it simpler, fairer, and more pro-growth . The President will lead a bipartisan effort to reform and simplify the tax code.
  • To help workers find better, higher-paying jobs, the President has proposed to double the number of people served by our principal job training program and increase funding for community colleges.
  • To stand with workers in poor communities and those that have lost manufacturing, textile, and other jobs, the President proposes the creation of opportunity zones. To assist these communities in helping themselves, w e will provide tax relief, and other incentives to attract new business, and improve housing, job training, and high-tech infrastructure.