What Can Taxation in the Thirteen Colonies Teach Us About the “Consent of the Governed” in U.S. Territories Today?

Neil Weare and Edoardo Ortiz 

Public debate about U.S. territories is often shaped by unsupported assumptions or  even outright falsehoods—especially on the issue of taxes. Addressing these myths is  important to de-normalize the undemocratic colonial rule of more than 3.6 million people  in Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and the Northern  Mariana Islands. 

Tax Day gives us a timely opportunity to address some common misconceptions, which  we unpack further in our new report “Taxation Without Representation: Colonial  Narratives Then and Now. 

Misconception #1: Why should the Territories complain about their political status? They don't pay taxes! 

Fact: This is simply false. People in U.S. Territories pay billions in federal taxes a year.  But whether they paid more taxes, fewer taxes, or no taxes at all, no option would make  undemocratic rule acceptable. The core issue is not just taxation, but the broader  problem of exercising federal power over people who lack meaningful checks against  that power. The rallying cry of “taxation without representation” in the thirteen colonies  was really about political legitimacy, consent, and limits on unrepresented authority. The  Declaration of Independence turns 250 years old this year and it clearly states that  governments derive their “just powers from the consent of the governed.” There’s no tax  dollar amount at which that becomes false. Fundamental political rights should not be  “means-tested” based on how much a population sends to the treasury. 

Misconception #2: Wait, so people in Territories pay federal taxes? 

Fact: Yes. While most don’t pay federal income tax, people in U.S. territories pay many  federal taxes, including federal payroll taxes, Medicare, Social Security and more. In  fact, they pay more than $5 billion a year in federal taxes, and since 2000 have paid  more than $100 billion. 

Misconception #3: Ok, but they shouldn't complain, they don't pay all Federal  Taxes. 

Fact: Democratic rights should not depend on hitting some tax threshold. There’s no  principled point at which paying “some” rather than “all” taxes makes undemocratic rule  acceptable. Back when the thirteen colonies shouted “no taxation without  representation" they also weren’t paying all the same taxes as a resident of Great  Britain. In fact, back in the 1760s, the average tax burden was 26 shillings for a  resident of Great Britain compared with 1 shilling for the average resident of the New  England colonies, a gap nearly three times larger than in U.S. territories today. Even 

with that disparity, “partial” taxation without representation was deemed wholly  unjustified. If it was unjustified back then, it’s still unjustified now. 

Misconception #4: They shouldn't complain, after all, Territories are an inordinate fiscal drain. 

Fact:The overwhelming majority of U.S. states and territories receive more from the  federal government than they contribute to the U.S. treasury. Ultimately, the data does  not support the idea that U.S. territories are some kind of outlier in the amount of  benefits they receive versus what they put in. According to a recent CENTRO Report,  Puerto Rico ranked 20th in total net receipts from the federal government, meaning 19  states were a bigger overall “drain” than Puerto Rico. Even on a per capita basis,  accounting for population differences, 10 states had higher per capita net receipts. In  other words, the available data does not show Puerto Rico or any other territory as an  exceptional outlier, much less serve as a justification for undemocratic rule. 

What does this all mean? 

Colonial rule persists in 2026 for many of the same reasons it did in the 1770s - colonial  double standards, discrimination, and the condescension and ignorance of colonial  rulers an ocean away, knowing little about the people and communities they govern.  Colonial rule - and the taxation accompanying it - are normalized and destigmatized. 

If people in the States know anything about the Territories, it’s often the idea that undemocratic rule is morally justifiable because of differences in tax rules. Normalizing  undemocratic rule makes the problem invisible. Regardless what future political status  option the people of each Territory choose, U.S. democratic principles and international  commitments demand these communities have a government – and system of taxation  – they consent to and can hold politically accountable. 

By counteracting these insidious misconceptions - and the assumptions they’re built on  - can we unravel the colonial narratives that deny democracy, equity, and self determination to over 3.6 million people in U.S. territories. 

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Neil Weare grew up in Guam and is Co-Director of Right to Democracy, which works to  advance democracy, equity, and self-determination across U.S. territories without taking  a position on status outcomes. Edoardo Ortiz lives in Puerto Rico and is Advocacy  Director at Right to Democracy.