A % increase in price, an inflation adjustment, would have been very acceptable compared to what they chose, I believe.

Most domestic programs, on the other hand, would be "frozen" at this year's raw number, with no inflation adjustment.

And antipoverty spending is vastly higher today than in 1974, even after inflation adjustments.

"Personal disposable income per family has been declining, after inflation adjustments, since about 1976," he said.

To do that would require an exemption of about $57,000, followed by automatic inflation adjustments.

The delays and the lack of an immediate inflation adjustment make this tax break worth less than it appears.

This will amount to approximately $275 million in principal and interest costs over the 35 years, before the inflation adjustments.

Even without an inflation adjustment, the median pay fell by nearly $700 from 1989 through 1992.

Withdrawals increase by 3 percent each year as an inflation adjustment.

But these two figures are not directly comparable since they use different inflation adjustments.