Which amendment states Congress has the right to levy an income tax?

• A. Amendment 12
• B. Amendment 13
• C. Amendment 16
• D. Amendment 18

Answer: (C)

The main idea here is who has the constitutional authority to impose an income tax at the federal level. The Sixteenth Amendment, ratified in 1913, explicitly gives Congress the power to lay and collect taxes on incomes from any source, without having to apportion the tax among the states or regard the population of each state. This clarification solved earlier debates about whether income taxes could be collected uniformly and directly by the federal government. Before this change, taxes had to be apportioned, which made a straightforward income tax impractical. The Sixteenth Amendment therefore makes income taxation a standard federal revenue tool. The other amendments mentioned pertain to different issues—changing how presidents and vice presidents are elected, abolishing slavery, and establishing prohibition—and they do not address the authority to levy income taxes.