United States Department of the Treasury
Encyclopedia
The Department of the Treasury is an executive department
United States Federal Executive Departments
The United States federal executive departments are among the oldest primary units of the executive branch of the federal government of the United States—the Departments of State, War, and the Treasury all being established within a few weeks of each other in 1789.Federal executive...

 and the treasury
Treasury
A treasury is either*A government department related to finance and taxation.*A place where currency or precious items is/are kept....

 of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 federal government
Federal government of the United States
The federal government of the United States is the national government of the constitutional republic of fifty states that is the United States of America. The federal government comprises three distinct branches of government: a legislative, an executive and a judiciary. These branches and...

. It was established by an Act of Congress
Act of Congress
An Act of Congress is a statute enacted by government with a legislature named "Congress," such as the United States Congress or the Congress of the Philippines....

 in 1789 to manage government revenue
Revenue
In business, revenue is income that a company receives from its normal business activities, usually from the sale of goods and services to customers. In many countries, such as the United Kingdom, revenue is referred to as turnover....

. The Department is administered by the Secretary of the Treasury
United States Secretary of the Treasury
The Secretary of the Treasury of the United States is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, which is concerned with financial and monetary matters, and, until 2003, also with some issues of national security and defense. This position in the Federal Government of the United...

, who is a member of the Cabinet
United States Cabinet
The Cabinet of the United States is composed of the most senior appointed officers of the executive branch of the federal government of the United States, which are generally the heads of the federal executive departments...

.

The first Secretary of the Treasury was Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton was a Founding Father, soldier, economist, political philosopher, one of America's first constitutional lawyers and the first United States Secretary of the Treasury...

, who was sworn into office on September 11, 1789. Hamilton was asked by President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....

 George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...

 to serve after first having asked Robert Morris (who declined, recommending Hamilton instead). Hamilton almost single-handedly worked out the nation's early financial system, and for several years was a major presence in Washington's administration as well. His portrait is on the obverse
Obverse and reverse
Obverse and its opposite, reverse, refer to the two flat faces of coins and some other two-sided objects, including paper money, flags , seals, medals, drawings, old master prints and other works of art, and printed fabrics. In this usage, obverse means the front face of the object and reverse...

 of the U.S. ten-dollar bill
United States ten-dollar bill
The United States ten-dollar bill is a denomination of United States currency. The first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton, is currently featured on the obverse of the bill, while the U.S. Treasury is featured on the reverse. The United States ten-dollar bill ($10) is a...

 and the Treasury Department building is shown on the reverse
Obverse and reverse
Obverse and its opposite, reverse, refer to the two flat faces of coins and some other two-sided objects, including paper money, flags , seals, medals, drawings, old master prints and other works of art, and printed fabrics. In this usage, obverse means the front face of the object and reverse...

.

Besides the Secretary, one of the best-known Treasury officials is the Treasurer of the United States
Treasurer of the United States
The Treasurer of the United States is an official in the United States Department of the Treasury that was originally charged with the receipt and custody of government funds, though many of these functions have been taken over by different bureaus of the Department of the Treasury...

, who receives and keeps the money of the U.S. Facsimile
Facsimile
A facsimile is a copy or reproduction of an old book, manuscript, map, art print, or other item of historical value that is as true to the original source as possible. It differs from other forms of reproduction by attempting to replicate the source as accurately as possible in terms of scale,...

 signatures of the Secretary and the Treasurer appear on all modern paper U.S. currency.

The Treasury prints and mints all paper currency and coins
United States coinage
United States coinage was first minted by the new republic in 1792. New coins have been produced every year since then and they make up a valuable aspect of the United States currency system. Today circulating coins exist in denominations: $0.01, $0.05, $0.10, $0.25, $0.50, and $1.00. Also minted...

 in circulation through the Bureau of Engraving and Printing
Bureau of Engraving and Printing
The Bureau of Engraving and Printing is a government agency within the United States Department of the Treasury that designs and produces a variety of security products for the United States government, most notable of which is paper currency for the Federal Reserve. The Federal Reserve itself is...

 and the United States Mint
United States Mint
The United States Mint primarily produces circulating coinage for the United States to conduct its trade and commerce. The Mint was created by Congress with the Coinage Act of 1792, and placed within the Department of State...

. The Department also collects all federal taxes
Taxation in the United States
The United States is a federal republic with autonomous state and local governments. Taxes are imposed in the United States at each of these levels. These include taxes on income, property, sales, imports, payroll, estates and gifts, as well as various fees.Taxes are imposed on net income of...

 through the Internal Revenue Service
Internal Revenue Service
The Internal Revenue Service is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and is under the immediate direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue...

, and manages U.S. government debt instruments, with the major exception of the Federal Reserve System
Federal Reserve System
The Federal Reserve System is the central banking system of the United States. It was created on December 23, 1913 with the enactment of the Federal Reserve Act, largely in response to a series of financial panics, particularly a severe panic in 1907...

.

History

To execute such services relative to the sale of the lands belonging to the United States, as may be by law required of him; to make report, and give information to either branch of the legislature, in person or in writing (as he may be required), respecting all matters referred to him by the Senate or House of Representatives, or which shall appertain to his office; and generally to perform all such services relative to the finances, as he shall be directed to perform.

The current law, , reads as follows (in part):
President George Washington appointed Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton was a Founding Father, soldier, economist, political philosopher, one of America's first constitutional lawyers and the first United States Secretary of the Treasury...

 as the first United States Secretary of the Treasury
United States Secretary of the Treasury
The Secretary of the Treasury of the United States is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, which is concerned with financial and monetary matters, and, until 2003, also with some issues of national security and defense. This position in the Federal Government of the United...

 on September 11, 1789. He left office on the last day of January 1795. Much of the structure of the government of the United States was worked out in those five years, beginning with the structure and function of the cabinet itself.

In the next two years, Hamilton submitted five reports:
  • First Report on the Public Credit
    First Report on the Public Credit
    The First Report on Public Credit was the first of three major reports on economic policy issued by American Founding Father and first United States Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton on the request of Congress. The report analyzed the financial standing of the United States of America and made...

    : Communicated to the House of Representatives, January 14, 1790.
  • Operations of the Act Laying Duties on Imports: Communicated to the House of Representatives, April 23, 1790.
  • Second Report on Public Credit
    Second Report on Public Credit
    The Second Report on Public Credit was the second report of three major reports on economic policy issued by Founding Father of the United States and first United States Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton on the request of Congress for consideration on establishing a national banking system with...

     – Report on a National Bank. Communicated to the House of Representatives, December 14, 1790.
  • Report on the Establishment of a Mint: Communicated to the House of Representatives, January 28, 1791.
  • Report on Manufactures
    Report on Manufactures
    The Report on Manufactures is the third report, and magnum opus, of American Founding Father and 1st U.S. Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton...

    : Communicated to the House of Representatives, December 5, 1791.

Responsibilities

The basic functions of the Department of the Treasury include:
  • Managing federal finances;
  • Collecting taxes, duties
    Tax, tariff and trade
    The tax, tariff and trade laws of a political region, state or trade bloc determine which form of consumption and production tend to be encouraged or discouraged...

     and money paid to and due to the U.S. and paying all bills of the U.S.;
  • Producing all postage stamp
    Postage stamp
    A postage stamp is a small piece of paper that is purchased and displayed on an item of mail as evidence of payment of postage. Typically, stamps are made from special paper, with a national designation and denomination on the face, and a gum adhesive on the reverse side...

    s, currency
    Currency
    In economics, currency refers to a generally accepted medium of exchange. These are usually the coins and banknotes of a particular government, which comprise the physical aspects of a nation's money supply...

    , and coinage of the U.S.;
  • Managing government accounts and the United States public debt
    United States public debt
    The United States public debt is the money borrowed by the federal government of the United States at any one time through the issue of securities by the Treasury and other federal government agencies...

    ;
  • Supervising national bank
    Bank
    A bank is a financial institution that serves as a financial intermediary. The term "bank" may refer to one of several related types of entities:...

    s and thrift institution
    Thrift institution
    A thrift institution is a financial institution that obtains the majority of its funds from the savings of the public; savings and loan association and savings banks, are the types of thrift institutions....

    s;
  • Advising on domestic and international financial, monetary
    Monetary policy
    Monetary policy is the process by which the monetary authority of a country controls the supply of money, often targeting a rate of interest for the purpose of promoting economic growth and stability. The official goals usually include relatively stable prices and low unemployment...

    , economic
    Economic policy
    Economic policy refers to the actions that governments take in the economic field. It covers the systems for setting interest rates and government budget as well as the labor market, national ownership, and many other areas of government interventions into the economy.Such policies are often...

    , trade and tax policy
    Industrial policy
    The Industrial Policy plan of a nation, sometimes shortened IP, "denotes a nation's declared, official, total strategic effort to influence sectoral development and, thus, national industry portfolio." These interventionist measures comprise "policies that stimulate specific activities and promote...

     – fiscal policy
    Fiscal policy
    In economics and political science, fiscal policy is the use of government expenditure and revenue collection to influence the economy....

     being the sum of these, and the ultimate responsibility of Congress.
  • Enforcing Federal finance and tax laws;
  • Investigating and prosecuting tax evader
    Tax evasion
    Tax evasion is the general term for efforts by individuals, corporations, trusts and other entities to evade taxes by illegal means. Tax evasion usually entails taxpayers deliberately misrepresenting or concealing the true state of their affairs to the tax authorities to reduce their tax liability,...

    s;
  • Publishing statistical reports.


With respect to the estimation of revenues for the executive branch
Executive (government)
Executive branch of Government is the part of government that has sole authority and responsibility for the daily administration of the state bureaucracy. The division of power into separate branches of government is central to the idea of the separation of powers.In many countries, the term...

, Treasury serves a purpose parallel to that of the Office of Management and Budget for the estimation of spending for the executive branch, the Joint Committee on Taxation
United States Congress Joint Committee on Taxation
The Joint Committee on Taxation is a Committee of the U.S. Congress established under the Internal Revenue Code at .-Structure:The Joint Committee is composed of ten Members: five from the Senate Finance Committee and five from the House Ways and Means Committee.The Joint Committee is chaired on a...

 for the estimation of revenues for Congress, and the Congressional Budget Office
Congressional Budget Office
The Congressional Budget Office is a federal agency within the legislative branch of the United States government that provides economic data to Congress....

 for the estimation of spending for Congress.

The term Treasury reform usually refers narrowly to reform of monetary policy
Monetary policy
Monetary policy is the process by which the monetary authority of a country controls the supply of money, often targeting a rate of interest for the purpose of promoting economic growth and stability. The official goals usually include relatively stable prices and low unemployment...

 and related economic policy and accounting reform
Accounting reform
Accounting reform is an expansion of accounting rules that goes beyond the realm of financial measures for both individual economic entities and national economies...

. The broader term monetary reform
Monetary reform
Monetary reform describes any movement or theory that proposes a different system of supplying money and financing the economy from the current system.Monetary reformers may advocate any of the following, among other proposals:...

 usually refers to reform of policy of institutions such as the International Monetary Fund
International Monetary Fund
The International Monetary Fund is an organization of 187 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world...

.

From 1830 until 1901, the role of overseeing weights and measures was carried out by the Office of Standard Weights and Measures, which was part of the U.S. Treasury Department. It was then given to an agency which later became known as National Institute of Standards and Technology
National Institute of Standards and Technology
The National Institute of Standards and Technology , known between 1901 and 1988 as the National Bureau of Standards , is a measurement standards laboratory, otherwise known as a National Metrological Institute , which is a non-regulatory agency of the United States Department of Commerce...

.

Administrative materials

As part of its administration of Federal tax, the Treasury issues a wide range of documents providing its interpretation of the Internal Revenue Code
Internal Revenue Code
The Internal Revenue Code is the domestic portion of Federal statutory tax law in the United States, published in various volumes of the United States Statutes at Large, and separately as Title 26 of the United States Code...

 (IRC), which each document having a varying level of weight for which the tax payer may rely:
  • Treasury Regulations
    Treasury regulations
    Treasury Regulations are the tax regulations issued by the United States Internal Revenue Service , a bureau of the United States Department of the Treasury. These regulations are the Treasury Department’s official interpretations of the Internal Revenue Code and are one source of U.S...

     reflect the Treasury's interpretation of the IRC, may be promulgated by the Secretary of the Treasury, and when final they have "force of law" status. Congress can sometimes carve out areas in which the Treasury can actually make, not just interpret, the rules.
  • Revenue Rulings
    Revenue Ruling
    Revenue Rulings are public administrative rulings by the Internal Revenue Service of the United States federal government that apply the law to particular factual situations. A revenue ruling can be relied upon as precedent by all taxpayers....

     are issued under the same statutory authority as regulations, but generally are just a response to a taxpayer's question about their own tax liability. Published Revenue Rulings are released in the weekly

Organization

  • Secretary of the Treasury
    • Deputy Secretary of the Treasury
      United States Deputy Secretary of the Treasury
      The Deputy Secretary of the Treasury, in the United States government, advises and assists the Secretary of the Treasury in the supervision and direction of the Department of the Treasury and its activities, and succeeds the Secretary in his absence, sickness, or unavailability...

      • Treasurer of the United States
        Treasurer of the United States
        The Treasurer of the United States is an official in the United States Department of the Treasury that was originally charged with the receipt and custody of government funds, though many of these functions have been taken over by different bureaus of the Department of the Treasury...

        • United States Mint
          United States Mint
          The United States Mint primarily produces circulating coinage for the United States to conduct its trade and commerce. The Mint was created by Congress with the Coinage Act of 1792, and placed within the Department of State...

        • Bureau of Engraving and Printing
          Bureau of Engraving and Printing
          The Bureau of Engraving and Printing is a government agency within the United States Department of the Treasury that designs and produces a variety of security products for the United States government, most notable of which is paper currency for the Federal Reserve. The Federal Reserve itself is...

      • Under Secretary for Domestic Finance
        • Assistant Secretary for Financial Institutions
          Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Financial Institutions
          The Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Financial Institutions is an official in the United States Department of the Treasury who is the head of the Office of Financial Institutions. The office has been vacant since January 2010 when Michael Barr left office.According to U.S...

          • Office of Financial Institutions Policy
          • Office of Critical Infrastructure Protection and Compliance Policy
          • Office of Financial Education
        • Assistant Secretary for Financial Markets
          • Office of Debt Management
          • Office of Financial Market Policy
          • Office of Policy and Legislative Review
        • Fiscal Assistant Secretary
          • Financial Management Service
            Financial Management Service
            The Financial Management Service is a bureau of the United States Department of the Treasury and provides several financial services for the federal government...

          • Bureau of Public Debt
        • Assistant Secretary for Financial Stability
          • Office of Financial Stability
            Office of Financial Stability
            The Office of Financial Stability is a new office within the Office of Domestic Finance of the United States Treasury created by theEmergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 to operate the Troubled Assets Relief Program....

      • Under Secretary for International Affairs
        • Assistant Secretary for International Affairs
          Assistant Secretary for International Affairs
          In the United States Government, the Second Stage Review reorganization, effective October 1, 2005, renamed the position of Director of the Office of International Affairs as the Assistant Secretary for International Affairs within the U.S...

      • Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence
        • Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing
        • Assistant Secretary for Intelligence and Analysis
          Office of Intelligence and Analysis
          The Office of Intelligence and Analysis is a part of the Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, of the United States Department of the Treasury and is responsible for the receipt, analysis, collation, and dissemination of foreign intelligence and foreign counterintelligence information...

        • Financial Crimes Enforcement Network
          Financial Crimes Enforcement Network
          The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network is a bureau of the United States Department of the Treasury that collects and analyzes information about financial transactions in order to combat money laundering, terrorist financiers, and other financial crimes.As reflected in its name, the Financial...

      • Assistant Secretary for Economic Policy
        Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Economic Policy
        The Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Economic Policy is the head of the Office of Economic Policy in the United States Department of the Treasury. The current Assistant Secretary for Economic Policy is Janice C. Eberly.According to U.S...

      • Assistant Secretary for Legislative Affairs
      • Assistant Secretary for Management
      • Chief Financial Officer
        Chief financial officer
        The chief financial officer or Chief financial and operating officer is a corporate officer primarily responsible for managing the financial risks of the corporation. This officer is also responsible for financial planning and record-keeping, as well as financial reporting to higher management...

      • Chief Performance Officer
      • Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs
      • Director of policy planning
        Director of Policy Planning
        The Director of Policy Planning is the United States Department of State official in charge of the Department's internal think tank, the Policy Planning Staff. The position of Director of Policy Planning has traditionally been held by many members of the U.S. foreign policy establishment...

      • Assistant Secretary for Tax Policy
        • Internal Revenue Service
          Internal Revenue Service
          The Internal Revenue Service is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and is under the immediate direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue...

        • Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau
          Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau
          The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, statutorily named the Tax and Trade Bureau and frequently shortened to TTB, is a bureau of the United States Department of the Treasury....

      • Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) Official website
      • Office of the General Counsel
        • Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
          Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
          The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is a US federal agency established by the National Currency Act of 1863 and serves to charter, regulate, and supervise all national banks and the federal branches and agencies of foreign banks in the United States...

        • Office of Thrift Supervision
          Office of Thrift Supervision
          The Office of Thrift Supervision was a United States federal agency under the Department of the Treasury that charters, supervises, and regulates all federally- and state-chartered savings banks and savings and loans associations. It was created in 1989 as a renamed version of another federal agency...



The Office of the General Counsel is charged with supervising all legal proceedings involving the collection of debts due the United States, establishing regulations to guide customs collectors, issuing distress warrants against delinquent revenue collectors or receivers of public money, examining Treasury officers' official bonds and related legal documents, serving as legal adviser to the department and administered lands acquired by the United States in payment for debts. This office was preceded by the offices of the Comptroller of the Treasury
Comptroller of the Treasury
The Comptroller of the Treasury was an official of the United States Department of the Treasury from 1789 to 1817. According to section III of the Act of Congress establishing the Treasury Department, it is the comptroller's duty to...

 (1789–1817), First Comptroller of the Treasury (1817–20), Agent of the Treasury (1820–30), and Solicitor of the Treasury
Solicitor of the United States Treasury
The Solicitor of the Treasury position was created in the United States Department of the Treasury by an act of May 29, 1830 , which changed the name of the Agent of the Treasury.-Function:...

 1830–1934.

2003 Reorganization

Congress transferred several agencies that had previously been under the aegis of the Treasury department to other departments as a consequence of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Effective January 24, 2003, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), which had been a bureau of the Department since 1972, was extensively reorganized under the provisions of the Homeland Security Act of 2002
Homeland Security Act
The Homeland Security Act of 2002, , 116 Stat. 2135 was introduced in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks and subsequent mailings of anthrax spores. The HSA was cosponsored by 118 members of Congress. It was signed into law by President George W...

. The law enforcement
Law enforcement agency
In North American English, a law enforcement agency is a government agency responsible for the enforcement of the laws.Outside North America, such organizations are called police services. In North America, some of these services are called police while others have other names In North American...

 functions of ATF, including the regulation of legitimate traffic in firearms and explosives, were transferred to the Department of Justice
United States Department of Justice
The United States Department of Justice , is the United States federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries.The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated...

 as the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (BATFE). The regulatory and tax collection functions of ATF related to legitimate traffic in alcohol
Alcohol
In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....

 and tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...

 remained with the Treasury at its new Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau
Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau
The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, statutorily named the Tax and Trade Bureau and frequently shortened to TTB, is a bureau of the United States Department of the Treasury....

 (TTB).

Effective March 1, 2003, the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center
Federal Law Enforcement Training Center
The Federal Law Enforcement Training Center serves as an interagency law enforcement training organization for 90 United States government federal law enforcement agencies.-Location:...

, the United States Customs Service
United States Customs Service
Until March 2003, the United States Customs Service was an agency of the U.S. federal government that collected import tariffs and performed other selected border security duties.Before it was rolled into form part of the U.S...

, and the United States Secret Service
United States Secret Service
The United States Secret Service is a United States federal law enforcement agency that is part of the United States Department of Homeland Security. The sworn members are divided among the Special Agents and the Uniformed Division. Until March 1, 2003, the Service was part of the United States...

 were transferred to the newly-created Department of Homeland Security ("DHS")
United States Department of Homeland Security
The United States Department of Homeland Security is a cabinet department of the United States federal government, created in response to the September 11 attacks, and with the primary responsibilities of protecting the territory of the United States and protectorates from and responding to...

.

See also

  • Treasury Information System Architecture Framework
    Treasury Information System Architecture Framework
    The Treasury Information System Architecture Framework is a premature 1990s Enterprise Architecture framework to assist US Treasury Bureaus to develop their Enterprise Information System Architectures ....

  • Treasury Enterprise Architecture Framework
    Treasury Enterprise Architecture Framework
    Treasury Enterprise Architecture Framework is an Enterprise architecture framework for treasury, based on the Zachman Framework.It was developed by the US Department of the Treasury and published in July 2000.- Overview :...


External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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