<P> Before 1776, the American Colonies were subject to taxation by the United Kingdom, and also imposed local taxes . Property taxes were imposed in the Colonies as early as 1634 . In 1673, the English Parliament imposed a tax on exports from the American Colonies, and with it created the first tax administration in what would become the United States . Other tariffs and taxes were imposed by Parliament . Most of the colonies and many localities adopted property taxes . </P> <P> Under Article VIII of the Articles of Confederation, the United States government did not have the power to tax . All such power lay with the states . The United States Constitution, adopted in 1787, authorized the federal government to lay and collect taxes, but required that some types of tax revenues be given to the states in proportion to population . Tariffs were the principal federal tax through the 1800s . </P> <P> By 1796, state and local governments in fourteen of the 15 states taxed land . Delaware taxed the income from property . The War of 1812 required a federal sales tax on specific luxury items due to its costs . However, internal taxes were dropped in 1817 in favor of import tariffs that went to the federal government . By the American Civil War, the principle of taxation of property at a uniform rate had developed, and many of the states relied on property taxes as a major source of revenue . However, the increasing importance of intangible property, such as corporate stock, caused the states to shift to other forms of taxation in the 1900s . </P> <P> Income taxes in the form of "faculty" taxes were imposed by the colonies . These combined income and property tax characteristics, and the income element persisted after 1776 in a few states . Several states adopted income taxes in 1837 . Wisconsin adopted a corporate and individual income tax in 1911, and was the first to administer the tax with a state tax administration . </P>

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