Title 31Money and FinanceRelease 119-73

§5154 State taxation

Title 31 › Subtitle SUBTITLE IV— - MONEY › Chapter CHAPTER 51— - COINS AND CURRENCY › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER V— - MISCELLANEOUS › § 5154

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

A State, territory, or U.S. possession may tax U.S. coins and bills (including Federal Reserve notes and the circulating notes of Federal Reserve and national banks) the same way and at the same rate it taxes other money, whether held as cash or in bank accounts. This does not change laws about taxing national banks.

Full Legal Text

Title 31, §5154

Money and Finance — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

A State or a territory or possession of the United States may tax United States coins and currency (including Federal reserve notes and circulating notes of Federal reserve banks and national banks) as money on hand or on deposit in the same way and at the same rate that the State, territory, or possession taxes other forms of money. This section does not affect a law taxing national banks.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Historical and Revision Notes

1982 Act Revised SectionSource (U.S. Code)Source (Statutes at Large) 515431:425, 426.Aug. 13, 1894, ch. 281, 28 Stat. 278. The words “United States coins and currency (including Federal reserve notes and circulating notes of Federal reserve banks and national banks)” are substituted for “Circulating notes of national banking associations and United States legal tender notes and other notes and certificates of the United States payable on demand and circulating or intended to circulate as currency and gold, silver, or other coin” in 31:425 to eliminate unnecessary words and for consistency with section 5103 of the revised title. 1983 ActThis restates 31:5154 to clarify the intent of the section. See 26 Cong. Rec. 7152, 7170 (1894).

Editorial Notes

Amendments

1983—Pub. L. 97–452 substituted “other forms of money” for “United States coins and currency circulating within its jurisdiction”.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 1983 AmendmentAmendment effective Sept. 13, 1982, see section 2(i) of Pub. L. 97–452, set out as a note under section 3331 of this title.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

31 U.S.C. § 5154

Title 31Money and Finance

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73