AMT: From 155 to 3 Million

Congressional Record: Alternative Minimum Tax

Sen. Charles Grassley [R-IA]: Mr. President, I think it was 48 hours ago I opened a discussion with my fellow Senators on the alternative minimum tax. As I pointed out at that time, it is generally recognized that the alternative minimum tax is a policy failure.

Created in 1969, in response to the discovery that 155 wealthy taxpayers--and let me emphasize that I am talking about 155 wealthy taxpayers--were able to eliminate their entire tax liabilities through legal means, the AMT has now evolved into a place where, because it wasn't indexed, it has captured more than 3 million middle-class Americans as of 2004. The AMT was never supposed to affect anyone except the very wealthy people.