What did the 16th amendment do?

There are a lot of amendments that are historically significant. Amendments that include the right to free speech, double jeopardy, right to have case in court with an unbiased jury, the separation of powers of the branches of government, and many more are all significant. And then there was the integral amendment that was ratified and put into effect in 1913. The 16th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution changed the way taxes are done in the country. It was the amendment that granted Congress the power to create, enforce, and collect the federal income tax amongst the citizens of the United States. This way, the government was able to tax people based on the income they had made during the year allowing Congress to make more money easier. This marked the first time that tax returns would appear like they do in modern times. The activation of the income tax allowed for taxes imposed on goods and services to drop, permitting more business and investment.

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