Marihuana tax stamps stamps:: behind behind the the mystery mystery RON LESHER
ere are are few subjects in the worl of taxation that are more shrouded i n mystery mystery and misinformation than the 1937 tax on marijuana. Revenue stamps (overprinted with the alternate spelling "MARIHUANA") were created to comply with tax laws that applied to the intoxicating herb, but until recently the stamps have not been listed in the Scott Specialized Catalogue of Uniied States Stamps Cove Covers rs,, possibly poss ibly because of their thei r rarity in collectors' hands. The just-released 2006 Scott U.S. specialized catalog lists the marihuana tax stamps for the first time, but no values have been assigned. Until Februarv 2005, onlv six marihuana tax tax stamps stamps were recorded in co llector hands. All carried $1 denomina-
stamps have been poorly understood and their use has been shrouded in mystery. By reexamining the tax legislation and its antecedents we can clear away some of the misinformation surrounding the legal transfer of marijuana for experimental and medicinal use, and better understand the stamps that paid the tax on those legal legal tmsfers The Harrison Narcotic Act of 191 established a system to register individuals involved in the importation, production, manufacture, sale, study and pres cribing of narcotic substances substances The law further required that all orders for narcotics be entered on government-printed order forms, a copy of which was filed with the government agency.
titioner prescribing ($1); laboratory ($1); dealer ($3); and importer, manufacturer or compounder ($24). So-called special tax stamps resembling licenses served as the receipts for the payments of these annual taxes. es. Examples are reporte d in co lle cto hands, although I have only seen the special tax stamps for producer and dealer (Figure (Figure 1). From From their incep tion in fiscal year 1938 through the end of fiscal year 195 3 (June 30, 1953 ), these special tax stamps were printed for the Bureau of Internal Revenue by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. They They remain unlisted i n the Scott U.S specialized catalog The most commonly seen of these special tax stamps are for the "producer of marihuana." They were issued in
the original and one copy to the person who proposed acquiring the marijuana. marijuana. The original was forwarded to the proposed vendor. Figure shows the three similar forms. Each had to retain their forms on file for two years. The government charge for the forms was 24. hroughout the period of time that the order forms were used, they were also printed by the BEP. The tax on the transfer of marijuana among registered individuals was at the rate of $1 per ounce, and stamps had to be applied to the original order form. This accounts for the issuance of $1, $5 and $10 $10 stamps following the effective date of the act, act, Oct ober 1, 1937. In the case that the transfer was to any person who had not re gistered and
MA RI HU AN A TAX TAX STAM STAMPS PS 1937 THE ISSUE Becaus Because e there are tw o issu issues es of marima rihuana tax tax stamps stamps,, we w e wi ll refer to them by the year of first issue. The earlier set, prod~~cedy overprint ing four of the then-current then-current 191 documentary docume ntary stamps, stamps, is the lssue of 1937. The new Scott listings identify these stamps stamps as as Scott RIM1 RI M1 RIM4 (Fig( Figure 4). The rarity of these stamps in public hands prior to Februar February y 2005 is well we ll es tablished, with only two confirmed examples in collections, plus a few other sightings. single used copy of the $1 stamp was was seen seen in the 1970s, in the col lec tio of a member of the New York chapter of the American Revenue Revenue Association. To the best of my knowledge this ex-
Figure 3. Marijuana Mariju ana order forms: forms: original, duplicate and triplicate. Stamps were affixe to the lower left com er of the original copy. copy.
MARIHUANA IA OF 1937
The National Postal Museum has announced that additional "marked" copies of the stamps will be sold. The marking will consist of a horizontal and a vertical vertical straight straight line drawn in indelible black ink. Given the the historically negative view that collectors have of straight-edged copies of stamps and also of "remainders," "remainders," it is inde ed curious that the original sale of these stamps did not consist only of fully perforated stamps. There currently one stamp being offered that has a straight edge plus several seriously shortened perforations along the right side, a stamp that collectors would normally called damaged. If the National Postal Museum was trying to maximize its revenue f rom the sale of these stam stamps, ps, i is hard to see why so many straight-
The National Postal Museum has announced that additional "marked" copies of the stamps will be sold. The marking will consist of a horizontal and a vertical straight line drawn in i ndelible black ink. Given the historically negative view that collectors have of straight-edged copies of stamps and also of "remainders," it is indeed curious that the original sale of these stamps did not consist only of fully perforated stamps. There is currently one stamp being offered that has a straight edge plus several seriously shortened perforations along alo ng the right righ t side, side, a stamp that collectors would normally called damaged. If the National Postal Museum was trvine to maximize its revenue from the sale of these stamp stamps, s, is hard to see why so many straight-
printing Scott R248) were produced in panes of four, serir;lly numbered, and assembled in booklets of 16 stamps (four panes of The $100 stanips include an attached numbered receipt tab with spaces labeled "Issued to," "At," "At," "By," "By," "Collector," "Dist.," a nd line for the date. The booklets were delivered to 111ternal Revenue in just just tw o fiscal years: years: an 1958. In 1937 booklets I through were delivered, a total of 912 stamps serially numbered througli 912. he remaining booklets, numbered 59 through 198, with stamps serially numbercd 929 through 3,168, were delivered in fiscal year 1958. Booklet is not accounted for in the preceding description. description. That That bo ok-
through 198, all eventually wound u p i n t h e i n v e n t o ry ry o f t h e N a t i o n a l Postal Museum. The third pane from the booklet, numbered 925 through 928, was stolen from the museum a nd has not been recovered. It was part of the theft that involved a total of marihuana tax stamps. Only three stamps have ever been recovered, one each of the $1, an $1 stamps. It was reported in the March 5, 1990, Linn's Slarnp News, that a Seattle resident pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor counts of receiving stolen mint marihuana tax stamps. The case arose when the three now-recovered marihuana tax stamps were sold to a prominent revenue stamp dealer. Their origin came to light when the stamps
Figure 5. An imperforate pair of the $10 marihuana tax stamps, Image courtesy of Matthew Bennett Bennett International.
The National Postal Museum's recent deaccession also inclucled some imperforate examples (pairs and larger multiples) of the $1 $1 stamps. As illustrated in the auction catalog these stamps were cut from unperforated sheets, one of whose rows was stamped SPECIMEN. It is clear that these stamps are not illustrative trative of stamps stamps that that w ere d istributed for use to its district offices by Internal
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MA RIH UA NA TAX STAM STAMPS PS 1962 THE ISSUE In addition to Issue of 1937 marihuana tax stamps, four denominations of undated documentdry stamps ($1, Scott R667; $5, Scott R676; $1 Scott R677; and $50, Scott R727) were overprinted and delivered to Internal Internal Revenue beginning in fiscal fiscal year year 1 962 Figure shows the four Issue of 1962 marihuana tax stamps, Scott RJM5-RJM8. Prior to February 2005, only a used block of four of the $1 denomination had been reported to be in philatelic hands. cropped image of the block was pictured on the cover of the September 1997 American Philatelist. The stamps were actually affixed to a marijuana order form and were manu script canceled April 27, 1971,
Continuedfrom page 40
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The $50 stamps were not serially numbered, but did come in Danes of . gain, the high \;slue in cludes a receipt tab. There is no evidence that they were assembled into booklets booklet s as the earlier $100 $1 00 denomination and the regularly issued $50 documentary documen tary stamp stamps s were. Why did Internal Revenue order a $50 stamp? Given that tha t the Bureau of Internal Revenue apparently used few of the $100 $100 stamps of the lssue of 1937 for the punitive tax (more than half were sent to the National Postal Museum), the most logical explanation that these were intended for larger orders ders of marijuana marij uana for laborato l aboratory ry use. use. The lssue of 1962 marihuana tax stam stamps ps were delivered in i n only four fiscal years: years: 1962, 1969, 1970 197 0 and 197 1 971. 1. The 1971 delivery deli very consisted consi sted of 7,000 7,000 stamps stamps with a face value of $50,100. The National Postal Museum census of the lssue of 1962 stamDs consisted of 2,500 each of the $1, $1, $ 5 and $10 stam stamps ps,, and 200 of the th e $50 denominade nomination ti on.. That adds adds up to 7,700 stamps stamps and
this delivery, we should conclude that the remainder of the 1971 delivery was a sheet of $1 stamps. Given the block of four of the $1 stamp stamp cancelled April Apr il 27, 1971, one tempted to think that the final sheet in the fiscal 1971 delivery might have been the source of these stamps pictured in the American Philatelist article. We will probably never know. There are persistent stories that the tax on marijuana marij uana was was invalidate inv alidated d by the U.S. U.S. Supreme Court Cou rt in i n a 1969 19 69 cas that involved activist Timothy Leary, a prominent proponent of hallucinogenic drug use. find nothing in that decision decisio n that invalidated invalidate d the the tax; tax; the case of Leary's conviction for possession was was remanded to the lower courts. The Department Dep artment of Justice Justic e notes notes in i n the March Ma rch 21, 2003, Federal Register that the 1970 Controlled Substances Act "repealed and superseded the 1937 1937 Marihu Mar ihuana ana Tax Tax Act. The strongest strongest evidence eviden ce against a 1969 1969 invalidation of the tax on marijuana is the two 1971 orders with stamps on them that were illustrated in the 1997
