St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1894-10-15
PROPOSED CONSTITUTIONAL
IESNDNEIN

The Legislature OF the State of Minnesota
has provided by Chapter one of the iiene ii
Laws of 1Soj for the submission to The pco-
pie OF the Stale, for their approval or reiec-
uon at the general election to be held therein
in November of the present year. au amend
men, to Section One CD of Article Nine %
OF the State Constitution.
Tine section 10 De amended now reads as
follows:
SECTION l. All taxes tie be raised III tais
state shall be as nearly equal as may be- I'D
all property OIL which lakes are 10 be ievied
shall have cash yaluatlon. and be eQuaIizad
and uniform throughout the state: Provided,
that the Legislature may by general law or
special act, authorize municipal corpora lions
10 levy assessments for local improvements
upon the property fronting upon such I'm
proyements or upon the property 10 be Deue-
hted by such improvements. or both without
regard to cash valuation. aid in such mail
ner as the legislature may prescribe Aud
provided further, that for the purpose ct de-
fraying the expenses of laying waller pipes
and supplying any city or municipality With
water, the legislature may. By general or s..e-
clal law, authorize any such city or nun eli.
patty, having population of five thousand
t5.UiJ) or more. to levy an annual tax as
sessment upon the lineai foot of ali lands
fronting on any water main or wafer pipe
laid by such CITY or municipality within cor.
porate limits of said city for supplying wafer
to the citizens thereof without regard t. tie
cash value Of such property, and to empower
such city 10 collect any snch tax assessments
or fines, or penalties for failure 10 pav he
same, or any me or penalty fo- any Violation
of the rules Of such city or municipality in
regard to the use of water, or for any water
rate due for the Same"
PROPOSED AMENDMENT
It's proposed by the sa act of fS9 to
amend the above quoted section of the Con-
sttution by adding thereto the following
proyiSo; viz. =
And. provided further. that there NAV be
by law levied and collected tax upon all in
heritances, devises. bequests, legacies and
gifts of every kind and description above
fixed and specified sum, of any and all nat
ural persons and corporations. Such tax
above such exempted sum may be uniform,
or it may be graded or progressive. but shall
not exceed q maximum tax of i've per cent
The purpose of the proposed amendment
is to clothe the LEGISLATURE with authority 10
tax the following subjects:
l. Inheritances. =. Deyises. 3. Beoucsts.
i. Legacies. :. Gifts.
l. The said proposed amendment conteIn-
plates that ali inhertances, devises. ETC. III
excess Of q certain amount to be determined
gy the Legislature, shall be subject to TAXA
ton.
=. The tax may be graded or progress
sive, but shall not exceed Il MAXIMUM lax of
five per cent In other words it is pro-
posed 10 confer upon the Legislature au. hor-
ity TO tax the above named subjects By ap-
propriate methods to any extent not in eX-
cess of five per cent IF the amount thereof
is conferred, prescribe nxed rate not to ex-
coed five per cent, applicable to all inherit
snceS, de0ises requests. legacies aud gifts
regardless of the amount thereof. In other
words. 1t may provide that an inheritance of
Eve Hundred Dollars shall be taxed at the
same rate prescribed for an inheritance OF
Fifty Thousand Dollars. =
T. 1t NAV provide rates OF taxation vary
ing with the amount OF the Inheritance de.
wise etc. The rate of taxation may lie made
to vary as applied TO any particular Inherit
ance. bequeSt. etc. For illustration an IN
heritanee of One Hundred Thousand Dollars
may be taxed at certain rate tor the FIRST
Ten Thousand Dollars II different rate for
the next Ten Thousand Dollars ana sui
different rate for the third Ten I hou>and
Dollars, and so on. according to a rule which
shall be pre- cribed by the Legislature
5. The tax contemplated by the proposed
amendment is defined generally ITO be
burden imposed by government uuon al
gifts, legacies, inheFitances aid successi0us
whether of real or personal property, or both,
or any interest therein, passing TO certain
persons by will, by interstate law, or by any
deed or instrument made inter vivos in
tended to take effect at or after the death of
the grantor."
q. The justice of such tax is claimed to
rest upon the fact that the right 10 take prop
erty by devise or descent is the creature uf
the law and secured and protected by its
authority; wherefore, it is urged that the
state may justly attach to such subjects a
reasonable tax.
Z. Similar legislation has been i'll force
for some years i'll Pennsylvania and several
other states.
s. The said amendment is proposed for
the reason that doubt prevails as to the valid
ity of such legislation in the absence of ex-
press constitutional authority.
Fl. W. CHuDs,
Dated March "a. 1894. Attorney General