Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1882-10-18
Double Taxation.

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No. 4, and of house bill No. Q. Each of
these proposed measures aims to relieve the
mortgagor of real estate from taxation.
The listers are directed, whenever any tax
payer shall furnish evidence of the existence
and the amount of mortgage upon his real
estate, to deduct the same from the APP
praised value Of that real estate and to place
this sum in the list of the MORTGAGE or
owner of the mortgage. If there are more
than one Of the latter class, each individual
interest is to be ascertained and assessed
accordingly. The senate bill which was in
PRODUCED by Senator Howard of Rutland
county makes the mortgsgor liable if the
mortgage is a nonresident (of the state it
is supposedly and the taxes are not paid
within ninety days from the time they are
due, the certificate of payment of such taxes
to be a receipt for so much money paid
upon the mortgage. If the MORTGAGE is
not resident of the town where the real
estate is situated, he is assessed in the town
where he resides. Such are the main pro-
visions of the Howard bill. The house bill
is less specific in its provisions. When and
how the taxes of mortgages, resident or
nonresident, shall be paid is not specified.
If these measures were entitled, Acts to
create and perpetuate inequality in taxa
ton, we believe such title would correctly
interpret their practical operation if they
should ever become law. We do not
believe such is the purpose of the au.
thors Of these bills. Their intent, no
doubt, is to afford measure of relief to
--.. - -. a home "a sS q GGHHeshiSS
of gaining livelihood, have in part
paid for the same and given a mortgage for
the remainder of the purchase money. A
measure for this single purpose would be
both Just and humane. The objection to
the means TO worthy end proposed in these
two bills is that they open wide the door to
the ingress of crowd of abuses. Such
law must not only fail to tighten the bur-
dens of the class referred to, but by facilitat-
ing the claim for offsets and thereby re-
ducing the grand list, raise the rate of taxa
ton so that the exemption would bring
greater burdens to the poor man and the
means of relief and evasion to the rich.
When listing time comes round, and any bill
similar to these becomes a law, if the tax
lodging fraternity does not receive large
and legalzed accession to its ranks it will
be because men are growing more honest
and conscientious, and not from any lack of
opportunity for evasion afforded by the law.
Tax payers having real estate and dspo-
sition to shirk their obligations could have
their property conveniently mortgaged aud
there would be special encouragement to
mortgage in towns where taxes are heavy to
individuals in towns where taxes are light.
The Howard bill provides that if the mort
gagee is not resident of the town where
the real estate is situated he shall be assessed
in the town where he resides. Under this
provision in many towns real estate would
practically disappear as the basis of taxation
and personal property would bear nearly the
entire burden. Farms in some of these
towns, which are usually distinguished as
men in neighboring towns, some of them for
all or more than they are worth. Such real
estate will be taxed in those towns where
the mortgage is owned, and farmers in the
"poor towns" who are so unfortunate as to
own their property or honest enough to hold
it free from incumbrance, will pay the taxes
what are not borne by meager amount
of personal property. Is this equalization
of taxes2 To avoid this inequality one of
our lawmakers would have all mortgages,
except, of course, non-residents of the state,
taxed in the town where the real estate is
situated. This expedient might make fun
foi tile uvyo,' but IL might aisv 10 DEATH
to the frogs" If outside parties pay the
piper. there might be no end of dancing to
the tune of fine town houses, new school
houses and other town luxuries voted by
non-tax paying citizens to be paid by out
side tax-paying mortgages
But beyond all these and many similar
objections which might be made against
this proposed legislation, stands the consid-
GRAFTON that any law of this kind in practice
must be barren of any substantial relief to |
poor mortgagors. The man in need of
money is at the mercy of the lender, and
contract that the former shall pay all the
taxes is the condition precedent and the
almost inevitable result of the negotiations |
for loan. And so, while the poor man gets
no material benefit from the law, an oppor-
tunity is afforded the rich man for evasions |
which can but result in increasing the bur-
dens of his less fortunate or more honest |
tax-paying fellow citizen. This question is
many-sided, and we believe the more it is
studied by any candid man the less certain |
he will become that the greatest good to the
greatest number will be advanced by the en-
actment of law such as is contemplated by
the movers of these bills. Governor Bar I
stow has some wise suggestions on this
point. In his message he says: " Such laws
would be just, but would tend to increase
the number of mortgages, and to perpetuate
those already existing. Exemptions and |
offsets should be abolished, or made uniform
upon every species of property" If one
man has an offset by reason of money raised
on mortgage, why should not another, who,
having neither land nor houses, borrows on
bank, railway, manufacturing or municipal
securities or merchandise or personal prop
erty of any other kind? The offsets asked
in these bills is not equalization, but class
legislation, and, unless " exemptions and
offsets are made uniform upon every spe-
cies of property" many will say with
Governor Barstow that they should be
abolished"
The Springfield Republican of Monday
contains slanderous statement to the effect |
that the name of Hon. Timothy p. Redfeld |
of Vermont is privately associated with
New York experience similar to that of which
Charles Francis Adams was the victim a
few months ago. The amount which it is
alleged was extorted from Judge Redfeld |