Tenth Amendment Center: Tennessee Bills Would Help Encourage Use of Gold and Silver as Money
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Feb. 2, 2018) – Bills filed in the Tennessee House and Senate would exempt gold and silver bullion and coins from sales tax, encouraging their use and taking the first step toward breaking the Federal Reserve’s monopoly on money.
Rep. Ron Grant (R-Rossville) introduced House Bill 1915 (HB1915) and Sen. Dolores Gresham (R-Somerville) introduced Senate Bill 1893 (SB1893) on Jan. 25. The legislation would exempt from state sales tax the sale of platinum, gold, or silver bullion, along with the sale of numismatic coins sold for less than $10,000, and the sale of numismatic coins at a national, statewide, or multi-county trade shows.
The exemption would apply to the sale of platinum, gold, or silver bullion, that is valued solely upon its precious metal content, whether in coin or ingot form.
The bills are similar to two bills filed last year that carried over to 2018.
IN PRACTICE
Imagine if you asked a grocery clerk to break a $5 bill and he charged you a 35 cent tax. Silly, right? After all, you were only exchanging one form of money for another. But that’s essentially what Tennessee’s sales tax on gold and silver does. By removing the sales tax on the exchange of precious metals, Tennessee would treat specie as money instead of a commodity. This represents a small step toward reestablishing gold and silver as legal tender and breaking down the Fed’s monopoly on money.
We ought not to tax money – and that’s a good idea. It makes no sense to tax money,” former U.S. Rep. Ron Paul said during testimony in support an Arizona bill that repealed capital gains taxes on gold and silver in that state. “Paper is not money, it’s fraud,” he continued.
The new law’s impact goes beyond mere tax policy. During an event after his Senate committee testimony, Paul pointed out that it’s really about the size and scope of government.
“If you’re for less government, you want sound money. The people who want big government, they don’t want sound money. They want to deceive you and commit fraud. They want to print the money. They want a monopoly. They want to get you conditioned, as our schools have conditioned us, to the point where deficits don’t matter.”
Practically speaking, eliminating taxes on the sale of gold and silver would crack open the door for people to begin using specie in regular business transactions.This would mark an important small step toward currency competition. If sound money gains a foothold in the marketplace against Federal Reserve notes, the people would be able to choose the time-tested stability of gold and silver over the central bank’s rapidly-depreciating paper currency.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The United States Constitution states in Article I, Section 10, “No State shall…make any Thing but gold and silver Coin a Tender in Payment of Debts.” States have simply ignored this constitutional provision for years. It’s impossible for states to return to a constitutional sound money system when it taxes gold and silver as a commodity.
These Tennessee bills take a step towards that constitutional requirement, ignored for decades in every state. Such a tactic would set the stage to undermine the monopoly of the Federal Reserve by introducing competition into the monetary system.
Constitutional tender expert Professor William Greene said when people in multiple states actually start using gold and silver instead of Federal Reserve Notes, it would effectively nullify the Federal Reserve and end the federal government’s monopoly on money.
“Over time, as residents of the state use both Federal Reserve notes and silver and gold coins, the fact that the coins hold their value more than Federal Reserve notes do will lead to a “reverse Gresham’s Law” effect, where good money (gold and silver coins) will drive out bad money (Federal Reserve notes). As this happens, a cascade of events can begin to occur, including the flow of real wealth toward the state’s treasury, an influx of banking business from outside of the state – as people in other states carry out their desire to bank with sound money – and an eventual outcry against the use of Federal Reserve notes for any transactions.”
Once things get to that point, Federal Reserve notes would become largely unwanted and irrelevant for ordinary people. Nullifying the Fed on a state by state level is what will get us there.
WHAT’S NEXT
SB1893 was referred to the Senate Finance, Ways & Means Committee. HB1915 was referred to the House Finance, Ways & Means Subcommittee, Both bills will have to pass their committees by a majority vote before moving forward in the legislative process.
Mike Maharrey
February 02, 2018 at 11:23AM
