For every simple and straightforward tax question, there is a tax answer that is simple, straightforward, and Wrong.
Exempting the first $10,200 might be addressed by the IRS in the most simple and straightforward method possible. But it might not. Other calculations are also affected by unemployment income inclusion/exclusion: Social Security, for example (https://www.ssa.gov/ssi/text-income-ussi.htm). Oh, and then there are state taxing authorities that base their tax calculation on the federal return. So, not as simple as we would all hope for it be.
