Supreme Court of the United States · Official docket →
Anthony Dwayne Williams v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue
Paid petition · United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, No. 24-60525 · judgment August 7, 2025
Before the decision, well below the 4.1% base rate: the model weighted this down for a self-represented petitioner.
Question presented
Whether the Sixteenth Amendment authorizes Congress to tax compensation for labor not arising from the exercise of a federal privilege (i.e., an “excise”)1 without apportionment among the Union States. 1 The terms ‘excise tax’ and ‘privilege tax’ are synonymous. The two are often used interchangeably. American Airways v. Wallace, 57 F.2d 877, 880 (Dist. Ct., MD. Tenn., 1932).
Counsel of record
For petitioner
Anthony Dwayne Williams
For respondent
D. John Sauer
Solicitor General
Case
Subject area
Federal Taxation (estimated from the questions presented, in the Supreme Court Database’s categories)
Conference history
Distributed for 1 conference
Order
Order list, March 30, 2026 · Certiorari denied
Proceedings
- Mar 30 2026Petition DENIED.
- Mar 11 2026DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 3/27/2026.
- Mar 05 2026Waiver of right of respondent Commissioner of Internal Revenue to respond filed.
- Dec 22 2025Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due April 1, 2026)