The following is testimony submitted by Badger Institute Senior Vice President Michael Jahr in favor of AB 692, a bill designed to eliminate the marriage penalty for participants in the Wisconsin Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) program.

The testimony was submitted to members of the Assembly Committee on Ways and Means on Feb. 2, 2022.

Thank you, Chairman Macco and Members of the Assembly Committee on Ways and Means, for holding this hearing on AB 692.

This is more than a tax issue or even a fairness issue. As you know, families are one of the most important institutions in society — and they play a critical role in the wellbeing of children.

Time and again, research bears out what societies have long recognized: Family structure plays a role in child outcomes.

In a 2015 report, Princeton University sociology professor Sara McLanahan and Brookings Institution Fellow Isabel Sawhill concluded that “most scholars now agree that children raised by two biological parents in a stable marriage do better than children in other family forms across a wide range of outcomes.”

These outcomes include school achievement, future economic success and avoiding behavioral pitfalls.

Unfortunately, Wisconsin’s Earned Income Tax Credit can penalize and discourage marriage in certain circumstances.

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