For Some, the Tax Cut on Investment Income Is Not as Sweet as Advertised

By DAVID CAY JOHNSTON
Published: July 19, 2005

Millions of investors who bought dividend-paying stocks after President Bush persuaded Congress to lower the taxes on investments to 15 percent are paying a lot more, in some cases almost 50 percent more, two new analyses show.

The cause is the alternative minimum tax, a parallel income tax that was originally aimed at the richest taxpayers but is affecting an increasing number of Americans and denying them at least part of the Bush administration's tax cuts.