By Meg Jalsevac
WASHINGTON, DC., March 8, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Pro-family legislation sponsored by Congressman Lee Terry (R-NE) and Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) is expected to be introduced in both the House and the Senate today. The new act, entitled the Parents Tax Relief Act (PTRA), would grant tax relief and monetary incentive in various forms to families who chose to have one parent remain home as a care-giver to any children under the age of 6.
The new act is similar to a previous act, also introduced by Terry and Brownback in the summer of 2005. The previous act was not approved because of lack of time before the end of the Congressional session. If the session expires before a bill is approved, the bill is considered dead and must be re-introduced in a new legislative session.
The proposed legislation would allow tax breaks to families with a stay-at-home parent, extend certain Social Security benefits to parents who leave the work force to remain at home with young children and make the current Child Tax Credit permanent and eliminate the Marriage Tax Penalty.
The act would also provide incentive for businesses to provide telecommuting opportunities to employees that would prefer to work from home. It would also allow for financial incentives to owning a home-based business.
Concerned Women for America’s Director of Government Relations and Public Policy, Shari Rendall commented on the proposed legislation saying, “Parents have a tremendous amount of responsibility juggling work and family. The pressure to provide financially for a family often pulls both parents outside of the home to full-time jobs.”
According to statistics on Brownback’s website, the average family with children in 1948 paid only 3% of its income in federal tax. At today’s tax rate, the average family with children pays almost 25% of its income.
Rendall said, “This act is a step in the right direction toward ending the discrimination against parents who want to stay home.”
Senator Brownback and Congressman Terry will take part in a news conference today in Washington, DC to discuss their proposed bill.