Category: Power to Tax and Spend
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Social Security Act Cases
Social Security Act Cases (Scope of Power to Tax)Although the Court in Butler held that the spending power is not limited by the specific grants of power contained in Article I, § 8, the Court found, nevertheless, that the spending power was qualified by the Tenth Amendment, and on this ground …
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Taxation Purposes
Promotion of Business: Protective TariffThe earliest examples of taxes levied with a view to promoting desired economic objectives in addition to raising revenue were, of course, import duties. The second statute adopted by the first Congress was a tariff act reciting that "it is necessary for …
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Taxation Regulation
Taxation Purposes: Regulation by TaxationCongress has broad discretion in methods of taxation, and may, under the Necessary and Proper Clause, regulate business within a state in order to tax it more effectively. For instance, the Court has sustained regulations regarding the packaging of taxed arti…
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Taxes Permitted
Kinds of Taxes PermittedBy the terms of the Constitution, the power of Congress to levy taxes is subject to but one exception and two qualifications. Articles exported from any State may not be taxed at all. Direct taxes must be levied by the rule of apportionment and indirect taxes by the rule of u…
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Power of Spending
Scope of the Power of Spending for the General WelfareThe grant of power to "provide . . . for the general welfare" raises a two-fold question: how may Congress provide for "the general welfare" and what is "the general welfare" that it is authorized to promote? The fir…
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Power to Tax and Spend
Clause 1. Congress Power to Tax and SpendThe Congress shall have Power to lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United State…
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Federal Taxation
Federal Taxation of State InterestsIn 1903 a succession tax upon a bequest to a municipality for public purposes was upheld on the ground that the tax was payable out of the estate before distribution to the legatee. Looking to form and not to substance, in disregard of the mandate of Brown v. Maryl…
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Debts of the United States
Debts of the United States (Scope of Power to Tax)States.&emdash;The power to pay the debts of the United States is broad enough to include claims of citizens arising on obligations of right and justice.1 The Court sustained an act of Congress which …
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Earmarked Funds
Earmarked Funds (Scope of Power to Tax)The appropriation of the proceeds of a tax to a specific use does not affect the validity of the exaction, if the general welfare is advanced and no other constitutional provision is violated. Thus a processing tax on coconut oil was sustained despite the fact …
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Conditional Grants-in-Aid
Conditional Grants-in-Aid (Scope of Power to Tax)It was not until 1947 that the right of Congress to impose conditions upon grants-in-aid over the objection of a state was squarely presented.1 The Court upheld Congress's power to do so in Oklahom…