Georgia residents can now claim embryos as dependents on state taxes

[WellPreserved]

"Georgia residents can now claim embryos as dependents on their state taxes, the state's revenue department announced Monday.

"In light of the June 24, 2022, U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization and the July 20, 2022, 11th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling in Sistersong v. Kemp, the Department will recognize any unborn child with a detectable human heartbeat ... as eligible for the Georgia individual income tax dependent exemption," the department said in a statement.

The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled last month that "Georgia’s prohibition on abortions after detectable human heartbeat is rational."

The state's Living Infants and Fairness Equality (LIFE) Act "defines a 'natural person' as 'any human being including an un-born child,'" the court ruled."

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/ge ... d_nn_tw_ma

[Traci_Momof2]

So here's what I don't get about this. With actual live dependents, part of the dependent test is that they have to be under a certain age as of the end of the year, basically as of Dec.31 of the filing year. So for my son who was born in October, in the year he ages out I can not claim him because he will be too old as of Dec. 31 that year, even though he was the right age for majority of the year.

So does this fetus dependent follow a Dec. 31 date as well? If you have a fetus with a fetal heartbeat in your body on Dec. 31 of the filing year you can claim the dependent? But if you say got pregnant in August but then had a miscarriage in October, you can't claim it? Or can any woman pregnant at any point in the year claim the dependent?

These are the details that I haven't seen explained at all.

[Deleted User 1990]

What does that get you?
Do you get to write off maternity clothes?
Do you get the child tax credit?

[Deleted User 1977]

I could be totally off-base but this sounds like an.... enticement, for lack of a better word....for women thinking about getting an abortion and looking for somewhere to get one, to decide against it.

[SoFloMom]

I could be totally off-base but this sounds like an.... enticement, for lack of a better word....for women thinking about getting an abortion and looking for somewhere to get one, to decide against it.

I don’t think you’re off-base. I agree.

[Della]

A whopping additional deduction on state income tax. Anything else?

[Pjmm]

I could be totally off-base but this sounds like an.... enticement, for lack of a better word....for women thinking about getting an abortion and looking for somewhere to get one, to decide against it.

It is but they’re going to have to do better than that. It might be an enticement to the desperate poor. And it might encourage pregnancy among those who need welfare and see no escape from that life. So they’ll just entrench people further into poverty. Everyone else will be giving Georgia the finger.

[WellPreserved]

I could be totally off-base but this sounds like an.... enticement, for lack of a better word....for women thinking about getting an abortion and looking for somewhere to get one, to decide against it.

It is but they’re going to have to do better than that. It might be an enticement to the desperate poor. And it might encourage pregnancy among those who need welfare and see no escape from that life. So they’ll just entrench people further into poverty. Everyone else will be giving Georgia the finger.

The poor generally don't look for tax deductions but if this expands into number of members of household for SNAP, housing, utilities assistance, etc., I could see it as an enticement to the poor. Because I'm cynical, it could be a way to identify pregnant women in the state of Georgia and then investigate "why" if they don't have a live birth. The idea of reporting a pregnancy to the state is just uggy to me.

[Pjmm]

I could be totally off-base but this sounds like an.... enticement, for lack of a better word....for women thinking about getting an abortion and looking for somewhere to get one, to decide against it.

It is but they’re going to have to do better than that. It might be an enticement to the desperate poor. And it might encourage pregnancy among those who need welfare and see no escape from that life. So they’ll just entrench people further into poverty. Everyone else will be giving Georgia the finger.

The poor generally don't look for tax deductions but if this expands into number of members of household for SNAP, housing, utilities assistance, etc., I could see it as an enticement to the poor. Because I'm cynical, it could be a way to identify pregnant women in the state of Georgia and then investigate "why" if they don't have a live birth. The idea of reporting a pregnancy to the state is just uggy to me.

And a step to making an embryo a legal person

[WellPreserved]

It is but they’re going to have to do better than that. It might be an enticement to the desperate poor. And it might encourage pregnancy among those who need welfare and see no escape from that life. So they’ll just entrench people further into poverty. Everyone else will be giving Georgia the finger.

The poor generally don't look for tax deductions but if this expands into number of members of household for SNAP, housing, utilities assistance, etc., I could see it as an enticement to the poor. Because I'm cynical, it could be a way to identify pregnant women in the state of Georgia and then investigate "why" if they don't have a live birth. The idea of reporting a pregnancy to the state is just uggy to me.

And a step to making an embryo a legal person

Yes. A question I have and I've never seen an answer is: if an embryo is granted personhood, how does that affect abortion to "save the life of the mother"? I mean wouldn't the two lives be considered equal?