Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1880-11-12
r,v,fior

The general tax-bill introduced by Mr..
Taft of Burlington contemplates a more en-
tire change of our tax laws than any that has
come under our notice. II provides for the
assessing of the State tax upon the towns by
population. which, as We have said, is an eN-
rariment which we would like to see tried,
and we believe it would work well The
bill puts the polls into the list at one dollar
each instead of tic0 dollars, as AT present II
the present usage of listing property at one
half or onc-third its true value is TO be con-
tinucd, this is 4 just provision. At present
polls are excessively taxed. But if the prop
erty could be listed at IFS true cash value,
the poll tax would practically he lessened
onc-half, and if this change can he secured,
it would not be necessary to reduce the sum
at which the poll is put in the list.
The bill repeats the act of 1873 taxing at a
fixed rate the deposits of savings banks and
trust companies. But that act, if we under
stand the case, has worked very well In
der it, we believe, the State has realized at
least double the amount of taxes from the
deposits in the Savings Banks that it rc:illz-
ed under the old plan. We fear that a
return to the old system would bring less in
stead of more money into the State Treas
ury, and that the provisions taxing the de
posts of non resident dcpositors, and the
stock of non resident stockholders in corpor-
1 t,,l -, Cupl IpnnSlt :
and capital out of the State.
The provisions for taxing the real estate and
personal property of railroad, telegraph and
ras companies. are abStractly just but will
be likely 10 call out some pretty strong OPP
position To the bill We think that the real
estate Of all such companies, so far as posi-
bic. should be taxed like other real estate; and
that if a railroad or telegraph or gas COM
pany ismaking any money for IFS owners, lis
personal property should be eluitably taxed,
! The most radical change made by the bill
| is the refusal To allow any offset for debts
owing. The reason for this change, OF
course, is the fact that the allowance of an
| offset is to so great an extent made an instru-
ment Of evasion and fraud. But on the
other hand the refusal to permit deduction
/ for debts owing Is 50 essentially lneqult-
able. and would bear 50 hardly on thousands
ofbusincss men, merchants and manufacturers
doing business on borrowed capital, that ii is
quite certain that the legislature Will not
adopt this clause.
The bill requires from taxpayers ne
oath to the correctness of their lists ;
| but instead endeavors to secure true
| list by iining lister who lists property al
| less than its true value 5000, TO be recovered
| for the benefit OF the town ly the first person
suinr therefor As TO this, our judgment is
that the lists can best be brought up to their
true and proper figure, by putting every tan
payer under oath. In town determined to
maintain the existing system of undervalua-
ton, the provision for filming listers would
be likely to operate in one of two ways. 1t
would make ii impossible to get any respon
sible person for lister; or the officer would
be accepted under some arrangement or TN
| dcrstandng by which the town would pay
the listers fine if the penalty was eAactcd-
| While the bill has some good as well rs some
bad features, as 4 whole it is likely to fail
TO become a law, because it attempts to &C
complish too much at stroke. In improv-
ing our tax law, to attempt TO get more than
half a Loaf at 4 time, is to get mo bread.