The true northerner., 1899-05-10
Adjournment of the Legislature May
Not Be Reached for Two
Months Yet.
NEW RAILROAD TAX LAW MUST Be PASSED
The Ways and Means Committee at
It's Wits Ends tn Keep Down the
Appropriations - Sunday-ClOsing
Measure Is Almost Certain tn
Carry.
Especial Correspondence.l


journment. In the year named the
legislature hung on until July /. II
this legislature gets away any earlier
it will leave goodly number OF the
bills now on the calendar in the air,
for the progress thus far made demon
strates conclusively that the remaining
business cannot possibly be disposed
of in 90 days. The Pingree and anti
Pingree factions have again locked
horns over the tax question, and this
will extend the session TO an unusual
length. y day or two ago a resolution
naming May 81 as the date for final adj
journment stirred up a decided hor-
nets nest in the senate. The Pingree-
ties lost no time in charging that the
movement was backed by the railroad
companies, the officials of which well
know that if they can force an adjourn
ment at that time no new tax law will be
enacted and no special railroad char
tiers will be repealed. The Pingree-
ties rather got the best of the situa-
tion and succeeded in having the con-
sideration of the resolution made the
special order for this week Thursday.
The governors new taxation pro-
gramme calls for the enactment of
law providing for a state board to assess
the property of all railroads, express,
telephone and telegraph companies, and
to have that property pay the tax rate
paid by all other property in the par
ticular district in which it is located, in
stead of the average rate of taxation
throughout the state, as the Atkinson
law unconstitutionally provided. The
tax is to be collected by the local as
sessing officers and the revenue forward
ed to the state treasurer TO be credited
to the primary school fund. \ second
bill urged is designed TO equalize tax
es generally by making all corporations
which now wholly or partially escape
taxation pay their full share. The gov
ernor also wants the legislature TO ere
ate a state assessing board, which shall
hear complaints of inequalities in as
sessments and adjust these matters by
raising or lowering the figures of local
assessors, the decision of the state board
TO be final. Finally he urges that if the
legislature is afraid to repeal absolutely
all existing special railroad charters, il
should at least amend them so as to
apply the tax and rate provisions of the
general law to all companies having
these special charters. The plan pro-
posed in opposition to this is to increase
the specific tax rates provided in the
present railroad tax law, and enact a
new specific tax law covering express,
telephone and telegraph companies.
The increase contemplated will make
the railroads pay about $1,500,00O an
nually. There are not wanting legis-
lators who are even opposed to this, pre-
ferring to make no increase of rates
whatever. The factions are prepared to
fight the matter out on these lines.
The ways and means committees of
the two houses are becoming very much
alarmed at the aspect of the approprra-
tions question. There is not a depart
ment or institution in the state that is
not asking for largely increased appro.
priations over recent years and the dis
position of the Legislators has been to
vote these increases. The farmers have
insisted on continuing the present sugar
bounty and others are equally insistent
that the state shall pay every man who
served in Michigan regiment during
the Spanish-American war additional
compensation. AS practically agreed
upon by the committee in charge of this
bill, the amount to be paid will be As
cents per day for the full term of service.
1t is figured that the men will receive
S125 apiece and that it will require $780,
600 to carry out the provisions of the
bill. The beet sugar bill, which has al
ready passed the house and is now pend
ing in the senate, appropriates $400, 900,
but provides that any amount earned by
the companies in excess of this figure
shall be paid out of the general fund,
thus making the appropriation unlim-
tied. Figuring the appropriation for
this purpose at but 100000, however,
the committees concede that the appro-
priations in sight now aggregate more
than S7,500,000. When il is stated that
the tax levy for 1875 was only $4,537,-
672 the situation will be fully appreci-
ated. No one seeks to deny that in all
probability the amount that the sugar
factories will actually earn will be fully
Ss00,000 and may exceed that figure.
The farmers, who together with the leg
islators from districts having sugar
companies constitute majority of the
Legislature, will not listen to any sug-
gestion that the bounty be reduced, and
Gov. Pingree has announced that unless
they pass the soldiers pay bill he will
veto the bounty bill. 1t will be seen,
therefore, that both bills will become
laws. The best the members of the
ways and means committee can see,
however, isa possibility that the increase
over the budget of two years ago may be
held down TO S1,500,O00.
The Aldrich Sunday-closing bill has
been advanced to the general order in
the house, in spite of the determined
effort of the committee having it in
charge to smother il. The committee
decided not to report it out, but the
introducer succeeded in having the
hOnGa nr6ar ont Tl,.c roc,lf