Which amendment gives Congress the power to levy an income tax?

• A. 16th Amendment
• B. 15th Amendment
• C. 17th Amendment
• D. 18th Amendment

Answer: (A)

The key idea is that the federal government’s authority to tax income came from a specific amendment that explicitly authorizes it to levy taxes on incomes without having to divide the tax burden among the states. The Sixteenth Amendment, ratified in 1913, states that Congress has the power to lay and collect taxes on incomes from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the states and without regard to any census or enumeration. This overturned earlier limits and allowed a national income tax system, providing a steady revenue source to fund federal programs and services.

The other amendments address different issues: the Fifteenth Amendment prohibits denying the right to vote based on race; the Seventeenth Amendment established the direct election of senators; the Eighteenth Amendment prohibited the manufacture, sale, and distribution of alcohol. None of these grant or constrain Congress’s power to tax incomes.