Nonpartisan (nationalist) President Washington signs the Tariff Act of 1789, creating the Customs Service to collect a (revenue) tariff on imported goods from foreign ships at 8.5%, and a tariff on imported goods from American ships at 7.65%. The three-fold purpose of the act is to
- Fund the lawful operations of the federal government,
- Protect domestic industries, and
- Pay off the voluntary Union’s war debt.
[updated 8/1/2026]
Subsequent Events:
Authority:
Article I, Section 8 [Clause 1]
ccc-2point0.com/constitution-for-the-united-states
References:
Calvin D. Linton, ed. The Bicentennial Almanac: 200 Years of America, 1776-1976, (Nashville, Tennessee: Thomas Nelson, 1975), 44.
U.S. Banking Timeline
www.libertyforlife.com,banking,currency-us-timeline.html
Tariff of 1789 – Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tariff_of_1789#:~:text=The%20Tariff%20Act%20of%201789,revenue%20for%20the%20federal%20debt
Current U.s. National Debt:
