[csdvrx]

> I don't understand why we don't just not tax income below say $20k.

Because you want people to feel like they have skin in the game.

[rootusrootus]

I wonder if they'd feel better about that if they could instead earn enough where they actually had to pay income tax. It's not much consolation that you have skin in the game if you can only get 15 bucks an hour.

[csdvrx]

With the deductions it cost nothing, but it gets then the same feeling, and a visibility of how it works should they start making more money.