If passed, changes to the territory's Income Tax Act would put approximately $4.3 million back into Yukoners' pockets over the next two years.

'I want all Yukoners to know that they will find relief from income tax, effective for 2006,' said Premier Dennis Fentie, who also serves as Finance minister.

The amendments to the Income Tax Act are aimed at increasing several of the nonrefundable tax credits.

The basic personal amount an individual can earn without paying Yukon personal income tax would rise from $8,839 from $8,328. This would increase the credit to $622, up from $586.

The eligible dependent amount would also rise to $7,505, up from $7,071, also hiking that credit to $528.

The maximum pension income deduction amount would be doubled to $2,000, thus increasing the credit from $7 to $140.

Many people will welcome the changes, said acting NDP Leader Steve Cardiff, but the changes aren't doing enough for society's most vulnerable members.

'There are numerous areas where services are lacking and improvements need to be made,' said Cardiff. 'It missed the boat on a couple of things which would have made a difference for the most disadvantaged in society.'

The changes are very straightforward, he added, and an easy change for the government to make in bringing the Yukon's tax laws in line with federal legislation.

The whole purpose of the amendments is to mirror the federal legislation wherever possible, said Fentie. He added the changes would make the entire process simpler for Yukoners.

The amendments also include tax credits for adoption expenses, public transit and a Canada Employment amount.

Changes would also ensure that the $100-per-month federal Conservative child care benefit would not be used to reduce the low-income family tax credit.

Liberal Leader Arthur Mitchell, however, is asking why the amendments don't include the Yukon Party's election campaign promises of excluding the child care benefit from income determination on social assistance or eliminating the claw back of the child tax credit at income tax time.

Addressing the taxation on the federal $100-a-month child benefit should have been an easy change the government was able to take care of during this sitting of the legislature, said Mitchell.

It would have simply been a matter of changing the act to not recognize the federal money as income for tax purposes, he said.

'That's a disappointment.'

The Liberals are trying to confuse the issue, countered Fentie. The changes to the Income Tax Act in relation to the various child care benefits and the amendments put forward for this sitting are two entirely different initiatives, he said.

The amendments put forward in the tabled legislation predominantly cover personal amounts and tax credits, he said.

Dealing with the changes forthcoming related to the child benefits require further work and consultation before putting forward the amendments, he said.

The amendments put forward in the legislature Monday are work the government was able to do quickly, said Fentie. They would ensure Yukoners benefit from the territory's and Ottawa's tax regimes.

'The amendments to the Yukon's Income Tax Act demonstrate our belief that recently announced federal tax measures should be matched in the Yukon to maximize benefits to the individual taxpayer,' he said.

The legislation is expected to pass through the house prior to the end of the fall sitting on Dec. 13.