U.S. Federal Powers and Taxation: Key Concepts and Landmark Cases

What percentage of federal revenue comes from congressional taxes?

About 95%

What are taxes?

Charges levied by government on people or property to raise money for public needs.

What is one limit on Congress's power to tax?

Congress may only tax for public purposes, not private benefit.

What is a direct tax?

A tax that must be apportioned among the states according to their populations.

What is an indirect tax?

A tax that must be levied at the same rate in every part of the country.

What is the power to borrow?

Congress has no limits on the amount of money it may borrow or the purpose for borrowing.

What is deficit financing?

The practice of spending more than the government takes in each year and borrowing to make up the difference.

What is the commerce power?

The power of Congress to regulate interstate and foreign trade.

What landmark case established the commerce power?

Gibbons v. Ogden

What is the currency power?

The power to coin money and regulate its value.

What is legal tender?

Any kind of money that a creditor must accept in payment for debts.

What is the bankruptcy power?

The power to create uniform laws on bankruptcies.

What is bankruptcy?

The legal proceeding in which a court finds an individual or organization unable to pay debts in full.

Who has exclusive jurisdiction over bankruptcy cases?

Federal courts

What powers are shared between Congress and the President?

Foreign relations power and war powers.

What is naturalization?

The process by which a citizen of one country becomes a citizen of another.

What are copyrights?

Exclusive rights of an author to reproduce, publish, or sell their creative work.

What are patents?

Grants a person the sole right to manufacture, use, or sell any new invention.

What is eminent domain?

The power to take private property for public use.

What are implied powers?

Powers not explicitly stated in the Constitution but necessary to execute the expressed powers.

What clause provides the constitutional basis for implied powers?

The Necessary and Proper Clause.

What was the significance of McCulloch v. Maryland?

It established the principle of implied powers and the liberal interpretation of the Constitution.

What did the court rule regarding the Bank of the U.S.A. in McCulloch v. Maryland?

The creation of the Bank was 'necessary and proper' to execute four expressed powers.