Amendment XVI · Progressive Era Amendment
Sixteenth Amendment: Federal income tax
About 10 min total: 5 min reading + 5 min for its 5 practice questions
Congress may tax incomes without dividing the tax among the states by population.
- Proposed by Congress
- July 12, 1909
- Ratified
- February 3, 1913
- Group
- Progressive Era Amendment
- Effect on the Constitution
- Modified Article I, Section 9.
The text
The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several States, and without regard to any census or enumeration.
National Archives note: Article I, section 9, of the Constitution was modified by amendment 16.
What it means
- Congress may tax income from any source without apportioning it among the states by population.
- This made the modern federal income tax possible (first collected under the Revenue Act of 1913).
Who proposed it
President William Howard Taft urged Congress to propose it on June 16, 1909, and Senator Norris Brown of Nebraska introduced the resolution the next day. Progressives and Democrats in Congress pushed for it.
When it was proposed and ratified
- Proposed by Congress: July 12, 1909. Constitution Annotated gives July 12, 1909 (final House passage; Senate July 5). The National Archives transcript page lists July 2, 1909, but that is earlier than either chamber's vote, so this guide uses July 12.
- Ratified: February 3, 1913. The Secretary of State certified it February 25, 1913.
Amendments are not signed into law. Congress proposes them by a two-thirds vote of both houses, and they become part of the Constitution when three-fourths of the states ratify. The President has no formal role (Article V).
Why it was made
The Constitution required "direct" taxes to be apportioned among the states by population. In Pollock v. Farmers' Loan & Trust Co. (1895) the Supreme Court struck down the 1894 federal income tax as an unapportioned direct tax. Reformers wanted an income tax to replace heavy reliance on tariffs, which fell hardest on ordinary consumers.
Key Supreme Court cases
- Pollock v. Farmers' Loan & Trust Co. (1895): struck down the 1894 income tax
FCLE tips
- 16th and 17th were both ratified in 1913, during the Progressive Era.
| This | With this |
|---|---|
| 16th: income tax | 17th: direct election of senators |
Sources: National Archives (text and dates); Constitution Annotated (Congress.gov) (proposal and ratification history); U.S. Senate Historical Office and Library of Congress (sponsors).