This day in history

Oct 3, 1917:

Six months after the United States declared war on Germany and began its participation in the First World War, the U.S. Congress passes the War Revenue Act, increasing income taxes to unprecedented levels in order to raise more money for the war effort. The 13th (sic *) Amendment, which gave Congress the power to levy an income tax, became part of the Constitution in 1913; in October of that year, a new income tax law introduced a graduated tax system, with rates starting at 1 percent and rising to 7 percent for taxpayers with income above $500,000. Though less than 1 percent of the population paid income tax at the time, the amendment marked an important shift, as before most citizens had carried on their economic affairs without government knowledge.

* As of when I viewed the page on the History website, it incorrectly listed this as the 13th Amendment -- it was, in fact, the 16th. Don't worry -- I've already let the webmaster know... :)

Worth considering: the U.S. functioned for 137 years without a personal income tax -- indeed, the Founders went so far as to prohibit one in the Constitution. As with all attempts to add to government power, proponents of the 16th Amendment argued the tax would only affect a 'few, super-rich' individuals. Instead, the suicide of the Western world known as World War I provided the perfect excuse to expand and further entrench a power the Founders found repugnant. As always, 'war is the health of the State.' The phenomenal amount of power Uncle Sam accrued over virtually every nook and cranny of life in America in the 20th Century was in no small part due to his new ability to reach directly into the wallets of every American. Awash in money, it was inevitable D.C. would accelerate 'mission creep' far beyond the modest scope of Constitutional authority.

Repealing the 16th Amendment, and returning the Feds to a much smaller funding stream derived from tariffs, duties and user fees, would do a great deal to reign in the Beast on the Potomac.