Why was the tea act seen by many americans as a threat to themselves and their institutions?
The Tea Act was an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain (13 Geo III c. 44, long title An act to allow a drawback of the duties of customs on the exportation of tea to any of his Majesty’s colonies or plantations in America; to increase the deposit on bohea tea to be sold at the East India Company’s sales; and to empower the commissioners of the treasury to grant licences to the East India Company to export tea duty-free.), passed on May 10, 1773. Previously, the East India Company had been required to sell its tea exclusively in London on which it paid a duty which averaged two shillings and six pence per pound.[1] The East India Company would now be allowed to export its tea directly to the colonies without paying the taxes it was paying in London “to export such tea to any of the British colonies or plantations in America, or to foreign parts, discharged from the payment of any customs or duties whatsoever”, and instead only required to pay the Townshend import duty of three pence
