April 15 has come and gone, and even though many same-sex couples can now pay as “Married,” many others, especially parents, still do not get the family tax benefits of different-sex married couples. A new campaign from the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force hopes to change that.
“Queer Our Taxes” is asking the IRS to do two things:
- Make a new filing status, “File As Family,” that recognizes us as families and accepts joint filing returns from same-sex couples who are unmarried.
- Let us Claim our Kids: Create a new “Dependent for Tax Purposes“ category that would let us claim the children we’re raising even if we live in a state that won’t let us adopt them.
Doing so, they say, would mean:
- More money in the pockets of many same-sex couples and their families.
- Equal access to the Earned Income Tax Credit and Child Income Tax credits, especially important to low income couples with children.
- A multi-million dollar boost to the economy.
They give the example of a same-sex couple in Mississippi with two children. One works full time, earning about $25,000 per year. The other spends most of her time taking care of their kids, but finds some jobs to bring in about $5,000 per year. Because Mississippi does not recognize them as married (even if they wed in a state where it is legal), and will not allow same-sex couples to jointly adopt, they can’t qualify for the Child Tax Credit or the Earned Income Credit. Currently, they would get a $200 rebate. If they could file as a family and claim their kids, however, they would get almost $6,000 — which would make a huge difference at their income level.
Agree? Sign the petition, which the Task Force will deliver to the Obama administration and the IRS.