In the beginning it took away exotic breaks to high-income taxpayers who paid little or no tax.
The idea is that high-income taxpayers can shoulder the burden of a high tax rate.
Income taxes were raised for high-income taxpayers; the change was expected to bring in another $1.3 billion.
While the plans benefit high-income taxpayers the most, it appears that they are being used widely throughout the population.
For high-income taxpayers - and that would include anyone with a very large capital gain - the savings will be small.
When the federal individual income tax was enacted in 1913, it applied to high-income taxpayers.
"We are dependent on high-income taxpayers, more than any state in the country."
The 529's are one of the few education tax breaks available to high-income taxpayers.
These high-income taxpayers also captured a quarter of the nation's total personal income growth from 1995 through 1999.
But it was well below the rate for 1996, when 3.2 percent of high-income taxpayers were audited.