, 1890-03-20
MIR. BUGHEs' RENEWAL BILL.
The Senate Discusses 1t at Length In
Evening Session.

The Senate Discusses 1t at Length In
/ Evening Session.
Twen,y'onc senators were present this
evening when the senate met to consider
Mr.. Hughes renewal bill
Before the bill was taken up the GOV
ernor informed the senate that he had
/ signed house bill 3s, entitled an act
allowing school districts to borrow
money and isse bonds for the building
and furnishing Of school houses, etc. /:
also, Mr.. kinnear's bill providing for
the printing and distributing of ballots
at the public expense; also, senate bill
il9, providing for the construction Of
drains and bitches.
| MIR. Houghton then started the ball
rolling by submitting az amendment
| prescribing the manner In which asses
sors shall ascertain the value of mines
and mining claims. on April 1 the
owners or presidents of mines shall
make statements Of tho net profits, and
they shall be taken as the net value of
the mines, Coal mines were excluded.
Mir. owings supported the amendment,
and Mr.. Thompson, of Pierce, told how
he had spent $4,000 for the purpose of
discovering oil near Sumner.
The speaker did not believe In taxing
capital when 1t WAS anxious to develop
the state.
Before taking a vote, Mr. Houghton
further amended his amendment by
also including machinery.
Mr.. Kinnear opposed this, and Mr..
Houghton withdrew his last amend
ment.
The amendment was adopted.
Mr.. Luce next submitted an amend.
ment that insurance companies pay into
the state treasury tax of 1 per cent.
Mr.. Kinnear thought "a per cent. was
better, and suggested this as an amend
ment to the amendment
Mr.. Luce asked the King county
senator what he thought would be fair
tax for home insurance companies to
pay, and MIR. Kinnear frankly admitted
his ignorance OF the subject.
Mr.. Wood thought l per cent. was hard
enough for any company to pay.
Mr.. Rinehart said that foreign corpor.
ations paid their taxes when they were
organized. The object of taxing foreign
corporations was for the purpose .of
placing them on more equal basis
with tho companies organized in the
state.
MIR. owings failed to SEQ the force of
the argument. The presumption OF the
law was that the companies paid taxes
somewhere. II n foreign company paid
taxes at home they should not be asked
to pay taxes in Washington. Whatever
the state charged the companies the peo-
PIE who insured would have to pay the
companies.
Mlr. Dunn looked upon the tax as a
4.
II we were Obliged to have tax let 1t be
as small as possible.
Mr.. kneeland thought the state was
treading on delicate ground. Ii was
unfair to ask insurance companies TO
pay taxes after the losses they had been
put to last summer.
After a lively passage OF arms between
Messrs. Owings and Rinehart Mr..
Thurston said that he regretted that the
King county senator had cited Oregon
as nm example for Washington to follow.
If there were ever semi-barbarians in
fiscal matters, they lived in Oregon. In
financial matters they were positively
stupid. Ho regretted that 80 great a
state as Washington should be men,
The remarks were greeted with applause.
Mr.. kinnear's amendment was lost by
vote OF IL noes and ayes.
The original amendment was then
adopted by IL ayes and 0 noes.
Mr.. Houghton next submitted an
amendment That the state tax shall be
2li mills and not . mills, as suggested
by the committee on revenue and taxa
ton, and Mr.. Kinehart seconded the
amendment carried.
MIR. Lawrcnce's amendment to make
the school tax 10 mills, instead of 9
mills, aroused the wrath o. Mr. Long,
who said that in view OF the prospective
Immigration to tho state, 1t would be
highly improper to have such a school
tax; lost. IL ayes, 0noes.
Mr.. Rinchart followed with an amend.
ment. that nll goods chattels, moneys
and credits, except such as are secured
BY mortgages, shall be construed to In
clude personal property.
Mr.. Houghton hoped the amendment
would not prevail.
In advocating the amendment, Mr. |
Rinehart said that no had lived In be- |
nighted Oregon twenty-five or thirty
years, and know that Washington was
getting much OF Oregon's wealth and
many OF Orcgon's people through Ore.
gon's mistaken financial policy.
Mr.. Owings thought that chcap capi. |