[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 62 (Thursday, April 21, 2016)]
[House]
[Page H1924]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

           By Ms. PLASKETT:
       H.R. 5039.
       Congress has the power to enact this legislation pursuant 
     to the following:
       Article I, Section 8, Clause 1 of the United States 
     Constitution, grants the federal government of the United 
     States its power of taxation. While authorizing Congress to 
     levy taxes, this clause permits the levying of taxes for two 
     purposes only: to pay the debts of the United States, and to 
     provide for the common defense and general welfare of the 
     United States. Taken together, these purposes have 
     traditionally been held to imply and to constitute the 
     federal government's taxing and spending power.