Arizona weekly citizen., 1891-01-24

Il
 be made applicable to all kinds of pro
 perty. No discrimination |. should b ! made i'll favor of any particular industr q and whether the fault lies in the pre- I sent revenue law itself, or in failur ' to enforce the law, a remedy should b. I found. Itis also believed that the plal
 of flow valuation to- property and I highrate of taxation is radically wrong
 and has tendency to mlslead and in
 iure our credit without conferring an. | benefit whatever '-.'or Tirs ....ss-... z The question taxing the proceeds o mines has always met with active op T positionF from the mining interests. The
 personal property of mining Companies
 IS now taxed, and in my opinion there Il
 no good reason why the profits of min ing enterprises, if they can be properly
 reached without ieopardiZing Territoria
 progress, should not be taxed. Under
 the statutes the Territorial board o
 equalization may levy a tax Of 30 or l Sl0000 for general find purposes, ye1
 under the last administration the board
 levied but %, and the present board but 30 for the general fund. As ad
 ditional expenses were created by the 14th and 10th legislatures, to be paid out of the general fund an additional
 tax. proportionate to the increase should have been levied, but no doubt it was feared that anything like an in- creased taxation would frighten the peo
 pie, and the responsible parties prefer
 red to keep taxes down and swell the floating indebtness by the necessarily is- suance of ten per cent bearing warrants | Such action was misleading and unwlse and should b. understood hy the tax payer. When the territorial hJAting debt was funded in 1888 by tho issuance of S15O,O0O of Terrisoria b ads, then was the time for such provision of law as would put future Territorial finances upon a cash basis, and if valuation was not high enough, and could not be made so, then the rate tax should. Ina, been raised instead of permitting the tax payers to pay ten per cent interest on a large and floating debt. When the pre- sent Territorial treasurer entered upon the duties of his office, but a little over a year after the funding referred to, there were already S73,000 of outstanding ter ritorlal warrants; on the first of January thls year. there were Sl63,S11.57 and to
 lay after the annual redemptions have | been made, there are Sl2L14L79. which LlldN D6 OlO ANAS ing debt of the territory.
 The receipts from taxes into the ger eral fund for 1890 amounted to S67, ,077.O3, and for 1890 to S7S,945.97. As the asses sed property valuation of territory IS about S2S,050,000 after compromeses of railroad taxes, usually deductions and delinquencee, there remains. probably, S26,000.000 to tax, which, at 30 on the S1OO for general fund purposes, affords an annual revenue of S10,OO0. The prison alone absorbs over S50,OOO Of this fund, the asylum a large amount, and interest, salaries of officers, and expen- ses authorized by appropriations, ex- penses of legislature, and printing, not paid by the United states, contingent expenses of the Governors office, library, etc, So far exceed the general fund in come that the annual deficit approXi- mates S40,000, evidenced by warrants bearing 10 per cent interest. The law ;,assed by the present congress known as the Arizona Funding Act, was evl- dently contemplated to releIYe the sltua- tion. This act has been assailed at times as injurious and unwise, and clamor raised for its repeal. l cannot conceive how the critics can arrive at their ad- verse conclusions. The actin question is almost an exact copy of the Funding Law passed by the last administration, except that its provisions are extended ID some respects in order to give IL greater scope in relieving territorial necessities. The old funding commission did not feei that it had authority of law to funo more than Sl50,000 of the territorial debt on account of the act of congress If July 30, 1886, known as the Harrison Act, and the new law cures the obstacle. As the average rate ot interest on the territorial. county and municipal debt is 8 Der cent. and the funding act providss for a reduction of ) Der cent. and fol continuing territorial affairs on casl basis after the act becomes operative. and as it is believed that the act em braces all proper sa'e guards tD the ter ritorlal financial interlstS, 1t ls extreme iy difficult to understand why il should 5e objectionable to the people. H. author may be dislIked by some, bui is no reas :D Ghy the law should be as sailed. l consider 1t one of the most i'm portant acts yet passed for the benefit of the territory, and l urge such acton on your part as will assist Tn making its provisions egective so far as may be, without delay.
 Owing to the financial depression throughout the country lately, the fund Ing commission has been unable to ne gotlate the bonds as authorized, al though publications have been made by the territorial treasurer, and the re uuirements of the act. so far as possible carried out You will no doubt perceive that it is absoluetlv necessary in order to promote the best interests of the peo pie at this time, that both the revenue should be increased and retrenchment in public expenses should be had.
 I am of the opinion that the revenues can be increased by so amending the revenue laws to provide for small tax for territorial purposes purely, on all kinds of public business and professions in Arizona not now bearing territorial tax, and commend to your careful con sideration the views of the territorial auditor ou this subject as presented in his report In regard to retrenchmert I believe the present annual deficit can be met as follows:
 Reduction expenses to Terrltor
 lal prison ....-.- ..-...... S2O.OOO Commissioner of immigration. 4.5OO Territorial Geologlst ..... 2,5OO Sanitary Commission and Feter-
 mary Surgeon. 5,OOO Expenses Insane Asylum. .... 5000 1OIdl S1OSOOO
 I will refer more in detail to the cases named, hereafter, in discussing the var ious institutions and offices.
 In addition to retrenchment and pro viding for an increase in revenues, it IS also incumbent upon you to devise some means. if possible, fer necessary public improvements and for the proUec- tion of territorial interests where ap- pear absolutely necessary and you are apparently stopped by the act of congress of July Both, 1896.
 RAILROAD TAXATION.
 The message states that the railroad representatives always appear before the boards of equalization to have their taxation reduced. While these corpor ha coma riuht as ptharc #