Dear Commissioner Shulman:
Under present law, more than 21 million taxpayers will be subject to higher taxes in 2010 unless legislation is enacted to limit the reach of the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT). We realize that this fact is causing concern for many taxpayers and is creating administrative difficulties for the IRS as the agency prepares for the upcoming filing season.
As the leaders of the Congressional tax-writing committees, we want to assure you that Congress is working on legislative relief. We will work to craft the AMT provision so that, in the aggregate, not one additional taxpayer faces higher taxes in 2010 due to the onerous AMT. Such legislation will allow the personal credits against the AMT and the exemption amounts for 2010 to be set at $47,450 for individuals and $72,450 for married taxpayers filing jointly.
We plan to do everything possible to enact AMT relief legislation in a form mutually agreeable to the Congress and the President. We urge the Internal Revenue Service to take all steps necessary to plan for changes that would be made by the legislation.
Thank you for your immediate attention to this matter.
Sincerely yours,
Max Baucus Sander M. Levin
Charles E. Grassley Dave Camp
