Income Tax Law Article

The federal income tax was established by the 16th Amendment to the Constitution, which reads: "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."

The amendment was proposed by Congress in July, 1909, and declared law in February, 1913, after 36 of the then-48 states ratified it. Opponents of the tax, however, contend that the 16th amendment was improperly ratified by some of the states, and thus is invalid.

The Internal Revenue Service, which has long faced challenges to the income tax on legal grounds, has a 54-page bulletin on its website aimed at responding point by point to common arguments against the income tax.

The bulletin "The Truth About Frivolous Tax Arguments," was originally published at the main IRS Web site.