Alternative Minimum Tax
A special tax passed in 1969 targeting 155 high-income households that had, because of various deductions and credits, paid little to no tax that year. The AMT provides for tax rates of between 25 and 27 percent on taxpayers who have particularly large deductions.
Due largely to the effects of inflation, the AMT now affects far more taxpayers than was originally intended. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that by 2010, nearly all married couples earning between $100,000 and $500,000 will face some AMT liability.
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