American Government CLEP Prep Practice Exam

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Are you ready to ace the CLEP American Government exam? Prepare with confidence using our comprehensive CLEP American Government Prep Exam materials!

Each practice test/flash card set has 50 randomly selected questions from a bank of over 500. You'll get a new set of questions each time!

Practice this question and more.

Which branch of government has the power to levy taxes in the United States?

Executive branch.
Legislative branch.
Judicial branch.
State governments.

The correct answer is: Legislative branch.

The legislative branch, which consists of the Senate and the House of Representatives, has the power to levy taxes in the United States. This is because the Constitution grants Congress the power to "lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises." The executive branch, headed by the President, does not have the authority to directly levy taxes but does play a role in the budget and tax policies. The judicial branch, made up of the federal courts, does not have the power to levy taxes. While state governments can also levy taxes, they do so to support their own state expenses, not for the entire country.