Federalist Papers – Essay #36

Essay #36, Concerning the General Power of Taxation, brings to a close Hamilton’s focus on the need for the central government to have the power of taxation. He addresses the following lingering issues:

• The claim that the national legislature will not have sufficient knowledge of local circumstances to impose taxes on the people directly;
• Concerns about how the national tax system would operate, especially when both states governments and the union have the authority to levy taxes;
• Both levels of government would be wise enough to avoid taxing items already taxed by the other;
• The national legislature will be able to use the state’s tax collecting apparatus to collect federal taxes.
• The proposed constitution will not lead to “double sets of revenue officers” or “double taxations” as had been feared.

Credit for the summary and analysis of Essay #36 is given to Brittany Nelson and Christopher Higgins (second revision 09/15/2011). Weinbloom, Elizabeth ed. “The Federalist Papers Essay 36 Summary and Analysis”. GradeSaver, 30 December 2011 Web. 30 January 2019.

You can read the summary and analysis of Essay #36 by clicking HERE.

You can read the entire text of Essay #36 by clicking HERE.