Harrison Narcotics Tax Act

Harrison Narcotics Tax Act
Great Seal of the United States
Other short titlesOpium and Coca Leaves Trade Restrictions Act
Long titleAn Act to Provide for the Registration Of, With Collectors of Internal Revenue, and to Impose a Special Tax Upon All Persons Who Produce, Import, Manufacture, Compound, Deal In, Dispense, Sell, Distribute, Or Give Away Opium Or Coca Leaves, Their Salts, Derivatives, Or Preparations, and for Other Purposes
Acronyms (colloquial)HNTA
NicknamesHarrison Anti-Narcotic Act
Enacted bythe 63rd United States Congress
EffectiveMarch 1, 1915
Citations
Public lawPub. L.Tooltip Public Law (United States) 63–223
Statutes at Large38 Stat. 785
Legislative history

The Harrison Narcotics Tax Act (Ch. 1, 38 Stat. 785) was a United States federal law that regulated and taxed the production, importation, and distribution of opiates and coca products. The act was proposed by Representative Francis Burton Harrison of New York and was approved on December 17, 1914.[1][2]

"An Act To provide for the registration of, with collectors of internal revenue, and to impose a special tax on all persons who produce, import, manufacture, compound, deal in, dispense, sell, distribute, or give away opium or coca leaves, their salts, derivatives, or preparations, and for other purposes." In Webb v. United States, the act was interpreted to prohibit prescribing maintenance doses for narcotics unless it was intended to cure the patient's addiction.[3]

The Harrison anti-narcotic legislation consisted of three U.S. House bills imposing restrictions on the availability and consumption of the psychoactive drug opium. U.S. House bills H.R. 1966 and H.R. 1967 passed conjointly with House bill H.R. 6282 or the Opium and Coca Leaves Trade Restrictions Act.[4][5]

Although technically illegal for purposes of distribution and use, the distribution, sale and use of cocaine was still legal for registered companies and individuals.

  1. ^ "Opium Throughout History". PBS Frontline. Retrieved April 14, 2010.
  2. ^ "Harrison Narcotics Tax Act, 1914". Drug Reform Coordination Network. Retrieved November 18, 2013.
  3. ^ Gray, Elizabeth Kelly (2023). Habit Forming: Drug Addiction in America. New York: Oxford University Press. pg 222.
  4. ^ "Opium Importation Amendment - P.L. 63-46" (PDF). 38 Stat. 275. H.R. 1966. Legis★Works. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 3, 2015. Retrieved June 14, 2015.
  5. ^ "Opium Manufacture Restrictions - P.L. 63-47" (PDF). 38 Stat. 277. H.R. 1967. Legis★Works. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 20, 2015. Retrieved June 14, 2015.

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