To get what he needed, Taft had to figure a way around the Supreme Court. Otherwise, Taft feared that Congress would simply pass another tax bill and be batted down by the justices. In July , Congress passed the 16th Amendment to the Constitution. To the shock of conservatives, the amendment was approved by enough state legislatures so by February , U. Secretary of State Philander Knox certified the amendment's adoption.
Not long after that, Congress enacted a federal income tax. Toggle navigation. The first form appeared in It was three pages long. Sign up for our email newsletter. Most colonists objected to this form of taxation since they had no political voice or input about the creation of new taxes. This gave rise to the slogan "no taxation without representation.
The history of income tax in America is an unusual one. The first federal income tax was created in during the Civil War as a mechanism to finance the war effort. The Bureau of Internal Revenue placed excise taxes on everything from tobacco to jewelry.
Following the end of the Civil War, the income tax did not have substantial support and was repealed in In the early 20th century, the income tax enjoyed renewed support and, in February of , the Sixteenth Amendment to the Constitution was ratified, granting Congress the power to tax personal income. The new system collected the income tax at the source, as it is done today, where taxes are initially withheld before the income reaches the recipient.
In the Bureau of Internal Revenue released the first income tax form, called Form This still remains the main income tax form and it has been modified and re-issued almost every year since then learn about the evolution of Form The first year was a test run where people simply sent in their forms to have them checked by the bureau for accuracy without paying any taxes.
By , both members of Congress and the public began to voice concerns about the complexity of the income tax form, stating that it was difficult for some to prepare and file their returns. The Revenue Act of began the practice of adjusting tax rates and income scales. The Revenue Act of also created what is widely considered the predecessor to the modern estate tax.
Learn about the history of the e-file process. Look at a detailed overview of income tax rates and income tax brackets and you will find that income tax rates continued to change throughout history and decades. The tax rate for the bottom income tax bracket grew, peaking at Calculate your latest income tax rate based on your income.
However, in Congress enacted a flat rate Federal income tax, which was ruled unconstitutional the following year by the U. Supreme Court because it was a direct tax not apportioned according to the population of each state. The 16th amendment, ratified in , removed this objection by allowing the Federal government to tax the income of individuals without regard to the population of each state.
For additional information on taxation in the United States, see the section on taxes on the web site of the U. Department of the Treasury. Further reorganization came in the s, replacing the patronage system with career employees. The IRS Restructuring and Reform Act of prompted the most comprehensive reorganization and modernization of IRS in nearly half a century and established a Taxpayer Advocate Service as an independent voice inside the agency on behalf of the taxpayer.
April 15th has not always been the filing deadline. March 1st was the date specified by Congress in , after the passage of the 16th amendment. In Congress set the date to March 15th, where it remained until the tax overhaul of , when the date was again moved to April 15th. If you have any further questions, please Ask A Librarian.
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