Question

Which answer best expresses what the Articles of Confederation said about taxing Americans?

A.) Only Congress could raise taxes, so states had a hard time paying their debts and expenses.
B.) Only the states could raise taxes, so the national government had a hard time paying its debts and expenses.
C.) Both the states and Congress could raise taxes, so Americans often gave so much money to the government that they had a hard time paying their own debts.
D.) Neither the states nor Congress could raise taxes, so they depended on donations from wealthy Americans to help pay their debts and expenses.

Answer 1

B) Only states could raise taxes, so the national government had a hard time paying its debts and expenses.

The Articles of Confederation was America's first constitution after breaking away from Great Britain. One of the main questions when developing this constitution was who would have the power to tax. Considering that taxation without representation was one of the causes for America's decision to leave Great Britain, it helps us to understand why this power was not given to the federal government. Rather, this power was given to state governments as citizens interacted more with their state government rather than the federal government.

Answer 2

The correct answer is B) Only states could raise taxes, so the national government had a hard time paying its debts and expenses.

Ther Articles of Confederation was America's first constitution after breaking away from Great Britain. One of the main questions when developing this constitution was who would have the power to tax. Considering that taxation without representation was one of the causes for America's decision to leave Great Britain, it helps us to understand why this power was not given to the federal government. Rather, this power was given to state governments as citizens interacted more with their state government rather than the federal government.