The Justices Refuse

The Justices Refuse

In 1863 Supreme Court Chief Justice Taney sent a letter to the Secretary of the Treasury attacking implementation of Section 86 on the compensation of Federal judges as being unconstitutional. This letter was also published as a Supreme Court decision (157 U.S. 701). In it, Justice Taney states:

"The Act in question, as you interpret it, diminishes the compensation of every judge three percent, and if it can be diminished to that extent by the name of a tax, it may in the same way be reduced from time to time at the pleasure of the legislature."

Here you can see that the judges understood the effect of this law was a diminishment "by the name of a tax". They knew it was not an actual tax, but a forced debt obligation. In this country there exists no circumstance under which a person lawfully can be forced to accept a debt against their will. The judges chose to exercise their Right to refuse to accept this debt.

The facts presented above were expressed by the Supreme Court in Pollock v Farmer's Loan & Trust Co. in 1895 where they said:

"Subsequently, in 1869, .... The question arose whether the law which imposes such a tax upon them was constitutional. The opinion of the Attorney General thereon was requested by the Secretary of the Treasury. The Attorney General, in reply, gave an elaborate opinion advising the Secretary of the Treasury that no income tax could be lawfully assessed and collected upon the salaries of those officers who were in office at the time the statute imposing the tax was passed, holding on this subject the views expressed by Chief Justice Taney. His opinion is published in Volume XIII of the Opinion of the Attorney General, at page 161. I am informed that it has been followed ever since without question by the department supervising or directing the collection of the public revenue." (emphasis added)

The tax forced a three percent debt obligation upon Federal government employees working under an existing employment agreement in 1862. However the tax established by Section 86 was legal when applied to the salary of persons who took employment with the Federal government after the Act was passed because they were on notice that a three percent "return", or kickback, was part of their employment agreement.

This "tax" in 1861 (notice that it is not even called a tax in the Act, but a Duty), only applies to Federal employees.

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Last Update: 05/16/97
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