European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - July 13, 1987, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 4 the stars and stripes monday july 13,1987 some families face marriage tax most couples will be subsidized Washington a about 40 percent of . Families will pay a marriage lax averaging 11,100 under the new Federal lax Law. And lower income Cou Ples with children will be among the hardest hit according to new analysis of the Law. Bui most married couples will be subsidized said economist Harvey s. Rosen of Princeton University. He estimated that 53 percent of married couple will be better off married than single and enjoy an average marriage subsidy of about $600. In general said Rosen spouses who earn about the same will pay a marriage tax while spouses with unequal incomes will gel a subsidy. Thai Means that families where both partners work in relatively Tow paying jobs to make ends meet will pay More a than their single contemporaries while traditional families where the wife slays Home 10 care for children Wum receive a marriage subsidy even at High income Levels. The comparison deals Only with married couples versus unmarried Couplet and singlet based for i was. It Doe not compare the total lax burdens under he old and new us Laws so even couple i with sub Sun till in Arriaer in May be paying less under the new Law than the Oil. Roten id the study published by lie National Bureau of economic research said the effect of the marriage lax has received Little attention m most do Cus Stonson the new tax code. Many people apparently believed that the Issue once controversial would become unimportant when Congress enacted the new Taw because its lower tax rate would make any marriage tax � Small As o be irrelevant Rosen said to the contrary he wrote the new Law creases Large taxes on being married for some couples and Large subsidies for others. The new Tan Law appears to be quite anti family for Low income workers Wilh  the marriage tax is the term used to describe the extra Tan Burden paid by a married couple when com pared with the lax paid by two single people with the same total income. Rosen said an analysis of the tax Bill shows thai Ihu marriage lax will indeed be lower under the new tax Law than under the old and fewer people will pay it. But the relatively modest 1119 average marriage tax for All families can be deceptive he said. Depending on the individual earnings of each partner and the presence of children the lax can be substantial. And the Burden docs nol fall Only on the wealthy. Rosen said for example that a family with two children where one partner cams j10,000 and the of her earns 17,500 will pay a marriage tax of a poo under the new tax Law compared with less than j5oq under the old tax Law. That to their tax Bill for 117,500 of income will be j 1,500 higher than the combined lax Bills of two single people with those incomes. The marriage lax works out to 9 percent of their Gross income. High income couples where Bolh work also pay a marriage tax bul nol much More than the lower in come family and less than they would have paid under the old Law. Rosen said. A couple with two children where each earns $50,000 will pay about ,800 in marriage lax on their $100.000 income according to Rosen s figures com pared to Aboul 13,500 under the old tax Law. Bul the two child couple where one cams $50,000 and the other earns nothing will receive a subsidy of nearly , Rosen said. Thai is their tax Bill will be about $3,000 less than two single people with that income who live together with their two children. That is about the same As under the old Law. Rosen said the results come from Ihrck factors rate. The new Law continues the practice of hav ing different Rale schedules for married and single tax payers. Thai carryover from the old but Law Perpet sales the marriage lax even with the lower to Nta. Deductions. The new Law allows two single people $3,000 each in Standard deductions for a joint return the Standard deduction is 15,000 for iwo a $1,000 loss. And for two Heads of household the loss of deductions for households is higher. Earned income credit which affirm Only Low in come families. Households with at East one child receive a 14 percent lax credit on earnings under js.714, meaning it is Worth up to 1800, and it is refundable in Cash if lax liability is less than j800. Bul the earned income credit begins falling m toe rate of 10 cents per Dollar of income when income hits $9,000, and it i Sappern entirety at $17,000. Thus a single Bead of household earning Only $5,714 will have an extra s800 lax credit even if there is no tax liability. Bul if that same person marries someone earning $11,286 a year they lose the caned income credit in addition to facing higher taxes. House probes dealings of Contra supporters Washington a a second congressional committee is quietly Irac ing the government s network of secret support for the nicaraguan con Rai focusing on allegations that . Officials May have condoned drug smuggling gun running and other crimes to raise Money for the rebels. The Tow profile yearlong investigation by the House subcommittee on crime was made Public last week when the panel voted following a debate to subpoena three Federal prosecutors in Florida. Rep. William Hughes the chairman said there have been some wild allegations by questionable sources bul be added there does seem to be some  he did nol elaborate. The committee wants to question the three Federal prosecutors about allegations that the nation s top Law enforce ment official. Attorney general Edwin meet Iii ordered a halt to the investigation of a gun running ring. Mccase has denied published report that he intervened in the Case so As not to endanger a congressional Vole on continued Contra Aid last Spring. But that is Only a Small portion of inc potentially explosive territory the committee is exploring. Hughes said. Hughes said it is looking into the Fol lowing allegations it has come across in extensive interviews ind research a convicted drug smuggler s Story ital be was offered a Deal by prosecutors some of Hie charges Are every bit As serious As what we be heard on television. If not More  rep. Hughes in return for funnelling some of his ill gotten gains to the nicaraguan rebels. Evidence that a marijuana Laden c 130 cargo plane was permitted to land at Homestead fab Fla with profits from that trip earmarked for he contras. Allegations thai the drug enforce ment Agency looked the other Way on drug dealing by and for the contras. The while House bus said but some individual contras May have engaged in drug trafficking but that there was no Evi Dence the rebel leadership supported by the United slates was involved. Charges that is. Officials Diplo Mats and Friendly foreign governments allowed crimes to be committed in the contras behalf. Some of the charges Are every bit As serious As what we Ven card on television. If not More serious said Hughes referring to coverage of the congressional Iran Contra hearing. Hughes a former criminal prosecutor acknowledged that marry of the allegations come from questionable sources including convicted felons. You re talk in Aboul some very sexy some very vol Atile statements he said. Hughes said crime panel investigators have spent months tracking leads that look them to Florida the Wesl coast and Central America. He said committee staffers and a full time Federal criminal investigator have interviewed witnesses inspected hotel registers and Bank records and traced air plane schedules and cargo Manifest. The most serious allegation concerns Mcnese and his role in a 1985 Miami gun running investigation dubbed Costa one by prosecutors. In that Case the Fri was investigating evidence of private arms shipments by Southern air transport out of fort Landerdale fla., to Contra forces. The chief investigator assistant . Attorney Jeffrey Feldman found enough evidence to recommend presenting uie Case to a grand jury. According to published reports feed Man uncovered illegalities linked to the support network ultimately run by u. Col. Oliver North the fired while Home aide. But in april or May of 1986, Felon Man s Superior is. Attorney Leon Kellner was told by his Washingtn based superiors to go slow on the Case according to a memorandum by the crime subcommittee. Melesc met with Kellner in april 1986 Meese has acknowledged thai he do cussed the Costa one Case but