The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1894-04-17
NO DOUBLE TAXATION.


There is an important hearing before
the Senate judiciary committee tomor-
row that should be attended by every
real estate owner for it is being given i'll
their interest and they will be benefited.
The hearing is to ensure as equable tax
alton Of real estate as obtains in the tax
alton OF personal property.
The laws of the State as at
present constituted bear with peculiar
hardships upon owners of realty which,
of course, can not escape taxation, VIII lie
every thing favors the personal property
owner, who can also, if he chooses, and
most do so choose, evade largely the
inquisitorial eve of the tax-gatherer.
There is double taxation on real
estate under the present laws and Rhode
Island is about the only Northern State
that persists in this unjust form of tax
alton. The argument of Mr.. ii. Ii. Shell
don before the Senate committee shows
the injustice of the present laws in a
nutshell as follows:
"The purpose of the act which is now
presented to your committee is to pre-
vent form of double taxation which
still exists under the laws of our State,
and which operates with peculiar hard
ship upon large and deserving class OF
citizens who are little able to bear it.
Under existing laws, the owner Of real
estate mortgaged pays a double tax.
First, he pays tax upon the full value
of his estate, as fixed by the assessors
without any deduction for the mortgage;
and, second, he also pays tax upon the
amount of the mortgage; for while the
debt secured by the mortgage is by law
taxable to the mortgage and the tax
should be paid by him, yet the rate of
interest which the mortgagee invariably
requires il made large enough to cover
the mortgages taxes, so that in fact the
mortgagor pays both taxes"
Two taxes are paid on the property.
One to the full value by the mortgagor.
The other to the value of the amount of
the mortgage by the mortgage. The
latter can recoup himself at the expense
of the mortgagor by fixing his
interest rate high enough to
cover the cost of the taxes.
Thus the rule works to the disadvantage
of the man who desires to own his own
home and needs to borrow few thou
sand dollars to add to his little all in
order to build. II becomes practically
prohibitory and hundreds are deferred
from building on this very ground.
MIR. Sheldon further shows what THE
News has already pointed out, the in
justice of this double taxation of real
estate" by the fact that "a double
taxation of personal estate under
the same circumstances is carefully
avoided by our existing laws.
The owner of personal property is taxed
only upon the surplus Of the ratable per-
sonal estate owned by him over and
above his actual Indebtedness. x Public
Statutes Of Rhode Island, chapter az,
section l0) But the owner of real es-
tate is taxed for its full value, irrespec-
tive of any indebtedness which there may
be upon it,
Rhode Island can not afford to longer
impose this discrimination against the
class of people who are among the most
valuable contributors to her prosper
ity, the people who seek to
establish themselves in their own
homes and take on themselves the
responsibilities Of full and complete
citizenhood, paying their share toward
the support of the State, while thousands
and millions of dollars worth of personal
property never pay a dollar into the
treasury of the city or State.