To determine the effective tax rate for a taxable income of [tex]$75,400, we break down the income according to the marginal tax rate chart and calculate the tax owed for each portion.
1. Income from $[/tex]0 to [tex]$10,275 at 10%:
\[
\$[/tex]10,275 \times 0.10 = \[tex]$1,027.50
\]
2. Income from $[/tex]10,276 to [tex]$41,175 at 12%:
\[
(\$[/tex]41,175 - \[tex]$10,275) = \$[/tex]30,900 \\
\[tex]$30,900 \times 0.12 = \$[/tex]3,708
\]
3. Income from [tex]$41,176 to $[/tex]75,400 at 22%:
[tex]\[
(\$75,400 - \$41,175) = \$34,225 \\
\$34,225 \times 0.22 = \$7,529.50
\][/tex]
To find the total tax, we sum the tax calculated for each bracket:
[tex]\[
\$1,027.50 + \$3,708 + \$7,529.50 = \$12,265
\][/tex]
Now we calculate the effective tax rate, which is the total tax divided by the total income:
[tex]\[
\text{Effective Tax Rate} = \left(\frac{\$12,265}{\$75,400}\right) \times 100
\][/tex]
[tex]\[
\text{Effective Tax Rate} \approx 16.27 \%
\][/tex]
Since the closest available option that matches our result is [tex]\(16.27\%\)[/tex], the correct answer is:
[tex]\[
\boxed{16.27 \%}
\][/tex]
