Dimensions of Law in the Service of Order: Origins of the Federal Income Tax, 1861-1913

by Robert Stanley

Overview

A sophisticated and accessible application of the newest theoretical work in public-policy history and legal studies, this book is a detailed account of how a permanent income tax was enacted into law in the United States. The tax originated as an apology for the aggressive manipulation of other forms of taxation, especially the tariff, during the Civil War. Levied with very low rates on a small proportion of the population and raising little revenue, the early tax was designed to preserve imbalances in the structure of wealth and opportunity, rather than to ameliorate or abolish them, by strengthening the status quo against fundamental attacks by the political left and right. This book shows that the early course of income taxation was more clearly the product of centrist ideological agreement, despite occasional divergences, than of "conservative-liberal" allocative conflict.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780195058482
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	07/08/1993
Pages:	352
Product dimensions:	9.34(w) x 6.36(h) x 1.08(d)
Lexile:	1720L (what's this?)

About the Author

California State University, Chico

Editorial Reviews

"Will be useful to political scientists, economists, and historians concerned with the development of taxation and with the Progressive Era."—CHOICE

"A tour de force. Stanley's book will not only force a long overdue revision of the traditional understanding of the democratic origins of the income tax; more broadly, it represents one of the most fully developed, sophisticated, and clearly articulated applications of the newest theoretical work in both legal history and the study of public policy. He adds a vital symbolic dimension to income tax advocacy that is well-grounded in an understanding of economic relations."—Mark Leff, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

"This book is a welcome addition and an important reminder that politics is often as much about symbolic display as it is about the allocation of resources and power."—American Journal of Sociology

"Robert Stanley has produced a highly sophisticated, tightly argued, and thought-provoking reinterpretation of the origins of the federal income tax....A compelling study."—The Journal of American History

"A valuable contribution to the literature. Stanley has a good story to tell and tells it well. One is continually struck by the author's erudition and intelligence."—Michigan Law Review

"Stanley's analysis is revisionist, responsible, and full of insight."—Reviews in American History

"Well-written, thoroughly documented, and should be of interest to a wide variety of scholars in political science, sociology, and history."—Perspectives on Political Science

"This is...a sophisticated work of legal history and the study of public policy....Such a text should be required reading for any course in legal history or tax policy and might be an important addition to a course in public policy."—Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly

From the Publisher