Taxes in the U.S. didn't always exist as they do today. America's first citizens were subject to very few taxes.
As time went on, more levies were added: federal income tax, the alternative minimum tax, corporate tax, estate tax, Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) taxes, and so on. Some were increased, while others were repealed—only to be added again. Below is an analysis of the origins of some of the more common taxes U.S. residents face today.
Key Takeaways
- The Constitution gave Congress the power to impose taxes and other levies on the general public.
- Though the Civil War led to the creation of the first income tax in the U.S., the federal income tax as we know it now was officially enacted in 1913.
- Many of the taxes we pay today were created in the 1920s and 1930s, including the estate tax, gift tax, and Social Security taxes.
- Income tax rates used to apply to everyone based on income regardless of status—single, married, and heads of households.
America Before Income Taxes
Taxes have been around for thousands of years—especially income taxes. But that wasn't always the case in the United States. The country was income-tax-free in its infancy. That's because there was no federal government to establish one. The British government, however, imposed a variety of taxes on the colonists. These included a head tax, real estate taxes, and the infamous tea tax that led to the Boston Tea Party.
After the Revolutionary War, the Constitution gave Congress the power to impose taxes and other levies on the general public. States were responsible for collecting and passing them on to the federal government. Most of these were excise taxes—taxes imposed on specific goods or services, such as alcohol and tobacco. The government also tried direct taxation—taxing things an individual owned. That didn't last, and the feds went back to collecting excise taxes.
Income Taxes
The Civil War led to the creation of the country's first income tax and the first version of the Office of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue—the earlier version of what we now call the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). This office took over from individual states the responsibility of collecting federal taxes. Excise taxes were also added to almost every commodity possible—alcohol, tobacco, gunpowder, tea.
The federal income tax as we know it was officially enacted in 1913. Corporate income taxes were enacted slightly earlier, in 1909.
Income Tax Rates, Then and Now
Tax rates tend to change—often, but not always, rising. When the federal income tax was implemented to help finance World War I in 1913, for example, the marginal tax rate was 1% on income of $0 to $20,000, 2% on income of $20,000 to $50,000, 3% on income of $50,000 to $75,000, 4% on income of $75,000 to $100,000, 5% on income of $100,000 to $250,000, 6% on income of $250,000 to $500,000, and 7% on income of $500,000 and up.
Tax rates were the same for everyone who filed taxes, and there was no filing status. This meant all taxpayers paid the same rate whether they were single, married, or heads of households. That changed over time. Tax rates increased considerably, then dropped, with the highest marginal tax rate settling at 37% as of 2023. (The highest U.S. marginal tax rate ever was 94% in 1944 and 1945, as the chart below demonstrates.) Modern tax rates also depend on filing status.
Other Taxes
The federal government created numerous other taxes over the years, including:
- Estate tax
- Gift tax
- Social Security tax
- Alternative Minimum Tax
- Corporate Alternative Minimum Tax
The first estate tax was enacted in 1797 in order to fund the U.S. Navy. It was repealed but reinstituted over the years, often in response to the need to finance wars. The modern estate tax as we know it was implemented in 1916.
Multiple taxes were created in the 1920s and 1930s, with the gift tax coming about in 1924.
President Franklin Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act in 1935. The government first collected Social Security taxes in January 1937, although no benefits were paid until January 1940.
The alternative minimum tax (AMT), a type of federal income tax, wasn't enacted until 1978. This parallel system uses a separate set of rules to calculate taxable income after allowed deductions. It is designed to prevent higher-income taxpayers from avoiding their fair share of taxes.
In 2022, Congress passed a corporate alternative minimum tax (CAMT), starting in 2023. It applies to corporations with average annual adjusted book income over $1 billion for a period of three consecutive years.
Sales taxes have been imposed by states, not the federal government. The first sales tax was enacted in West Virginia in 1921. Eleven other states followed suit in 1933. By 1940, 18 more states had a sales tax in place. Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, and Oregon are the only states without a sales tax.
Sin Taxes
Federal tobacco taxes were first enacted in 1794 but came and went over the years until 1864. That year, a box of 20 cigarettes was taxed at 0.8 cents. The rate is $1.0066 per pack in 2023.
States also tax cigarettes. In 2023, Missouri taxes them at a low of $0.17 per pack, while New York taxes them at a high of $5.35 per pack.
Because cigarette and alcohol taxes are built into the prices of these goods, many Americans don't realize they're paying them.
Spirits, wine, and beer are each taxed at different rates by both the federal and state governments. As of Dec. 22, 2020, the top federal excise tax rates were $13.50 per proof gallon of spirits, $1.07 to $3.15 per gallon of wine, depending on the wine's alcohol content, and $18 per 31-gallon barrel of beer. Each state sets its own tax rates for each type of alcohol.
- The lowest tax rate for spirits in 2023 was $2.00 per gallon in Missouri and the highest rate was $36.55 per gallon in Washington.
- For wine, the lowest tax rate in 2023 was $0.20 per gallon in California and Texas; the highest was $2.50 per gallon in Alaska.
- In 2023, beer was taxed at a low of $0.02 per gallon in Wyoming and a high of $1.29 per gallon in Tennessee.
The government started taxing tobacco and alcohol to pay back the debts it incurred during the Revolutionary War. However, social purposes have also long influenced the taxation of these items. The higher the tax, the more likely Americans are to be discouraged from consuming tobacco and alcohol. But because tobacco and alcohol taxes are flat taxes, they fall disproportionately on the poor. In other words, it is mostly the poor who are discouraged from using tobacco and alcohol because other income groups can afford to pay the higher taxes.
Gasoline Taxes
If the government taxes behavior it wants to discourage, why does it tax gasoline? After all, gas taxes were implemented long before the environmental movement. Federal excise taxes on gasoline were implemented in June 1932 under President Herbert Hoover as part of the Revenue Act of 1932. As its name implies, this act was designed to increase the amount of money the government had at its disposal. The gasoline tax was expected to raise $150 million in new tax revenue for the government.
In 1932, gas was taxed at a rate of $0.01 per gallon. By 2023, the tax rose to $0.18 per gallon. State gasoline taxes and fees can tack on an additional cost, averaging $0.39 per gallon. The lowest gas tax is $0.15 per gallon in Alaska; the highest is $0.68 cents per gallon in California.
Investment Taxes
Taxing investment income might seem particularly counterproductive given that investment is necessary for economic growth, but that hasn't stopped the government from including it under its wide umbrella of taxable income. Capital gains taxes were enacted in 1913, along with the income tax. Dividend taxes were enacted in 1936 but only lasted through 1939. They reappeared in 1954 and have persisted ever since.
When Did Americans Start Paying Income Tax?
The first personal income tax was imposed by Congress in 1861 in order to raise revenue for the Civil War. Congress repealed the tax in 1872. The idea was brought back in the 16th Amendment to the Constitution, which established Congress' right to impose a federal income tax. The amendment was passed by Congress in 1909, ratified by the states, and took effect on Feb. 25, 1913. That first year, less than 1% of the population paid income taxes. The rate: 1% of net income.
What Are Sin Taxes?
Sin taxes are levied onspecificgoods and servicesat the point or time of purchase. These items are taxed because they are—or are thought to be—harmful or costly to society. Tobacco products, alcohol, and gambling ventures are examples of items on which these taxes are levied. Sin taxes seek to deter people from engaging in sociallyharmful activities and behaviors.
What Is the Alternative Minimum Tax?
The alternative minimum tax (AMT) is a tax designed to ensure that taxpayers who earn above a certain threshold pay their fair share of taxes. The AMT places a floor on the percentage of taxes that a filer must pay to the government, no matter how many deductions or credits they may claim.
The IRS exempts income up to a certain level from the AMT, and this amount automatically adjusts with inflation. In 2023, the AMT exemption amount is:
- $126,200 for married individuals filing jointly and surviving spouses
- $81,200 for single individuals and heads of households
- $63,250 for married individuals filing separately
The Bottom Line
History is full of tax rebellions.Back in 1773, taxes incited Americans to destroy three shiploads of British tea. And in 1791, Alexander Hamilton's proposed excise tax on alcohol was enough to prompt the Whiskey Rebellion in Pennsylvania.
Tax rebellions didn't continue, but pressure to reshape taxes has produced laws periodically reshaping what Americans pay. The largest recent changes came from 2017's Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA). Before that, the U.S. saw major changes from legislation in 1981 and 1986, and again in 1993 and 1997. Many changes from the TCJA sunset in 2025. More shifts are surely on the way, but what they are remains to be seen.
