Scope and Content: St 1781, c 17 (Nov. 1, 1781) established excise (internal duty or tax imposed on the sale or use of certain articles) on wine, rum, spirits, tea, and other items to be levied on licensed retailers for the purpose of paying interest on government securities, to be paid to county collectors appointed by the General Court, who forwarded the fees every six months to the state treasurer. Licensed purchasers from other licensees were exempt, but importers and distillers were similarly taxed. Persons paying the excise were obliged to inventory and submit accounts of their stock. St 1781, c 33 (Mar. 7, 1782) elaborated on these requirements, but exempted sellers to other licensees (reversing the provision of the previous act) and exporters. –St 1782, c 33 (Nov. 8, 1782) repealed the previous laws, establishing new duties and requiring the collector to pay in quarterly. Per St 1782, c 64 (Mar. 22, 1783), imposts (duty or tax on goods imported into the country) were added. St 1783, c 12 (July 10, 1783) further specified excise and impost duties for a three year period. Overall during this period a number of acts imposed or amended excise and impost laws (often repealing previous laws), prescribed appointment of collectors (usually on an annual basis), and dictated reporting requirements of the collectors. –St 1785, c 18 (July 2, 1785) established duties on stamped legal papers, most ultimately to be paid every three months to impost and excise collectors. St 1786, c 48 and c 49 (Nov. 17, 1786) established new imposts and excise taxes respectively. The post of Comptroller General was established as of Jan. 1, 1787, per St 1786, c 42 (Nov. 10, 1786), to supervise and regularize reporting by impost and excise collectors. Resolves 1787, May Sess, c 65 (July 2, 1787) directed collectors of impost and excise and naval officers to settle their accounts with the comptroller general, Leonard Jarvis. –The first federal revenue bill after adoption of the U.S. Constitution passed July 4, 1789, whereby regulation of trade and collection of impost ceased to be state functions (see St 1789, c 18, June 25, 1789). St 1789, c 48 (Mar. 3, 1790) imposed a new annual excise on a large variety of articles (including coaches, chariots, phaetons, sulkeys and riding chairs) and on licenses to innholders and retailers, to be collected by county collectors of excise. The act also directed the clerk of the Court of General Sessions of the Peace in each county to receive license duties, and to forward them to the county excise collector. –With federal assumption of the state debt from the Revolutionary War, most state excises were repealed by St 1790, c 15 (Sept. 17, 1790), and the post of Comptroller General was discontinued per St 1791, c 15 (June 18, 1791), as of July 1791. Excise collectors after this time continued to collect carriage duties, duties on deeds, and various license duties such as for tavernkeepers or admission of attorneys, in addition to amounts still owing from previous levies. The excise on carriages was repealed by St 1794, c 23 (June 27, 1794). St 1795, c 80 (Feb. 27, 1796) repealed all remaining excise acts and gave responsibility for collecting various licensing duties to the clerk of the Court of General Sessions of the Peace, who forwarded fees directly to the county treasurer.
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