Benefits-Received Principle

What does Benefits-Received Principle mean in American Law?

The definition of Benefits-Received Principle in the law of the United States, as defined by the lexicographer Arthur Leff in his legal dictionary is:

Benefits-received principle of taxation

A tax theory that the beneficiaries of government services should pay most of the taxes for them. A tax on gasoline to pay for road building and repairs is one such tax; a sewer assessment on landowners to be served by the sewers is another. The principle is of limited usefulness, however; it is often hard to know who is benefiting from a governmental activity, and it is often the whole point of a governmental service to benefit those without money at the expense of those with.