Evening star., 1901-08-12
IMPRINTED CHECK STAMPS
PERPLEXING PROBLEM GROWING
OUT OF THEIR REDEMPTION.
Congress VIII BE Asked to Enact
LegislatiOn That VIII A6OHd
q Solution.

When the war revenue act Of June, 1893,
was passed by Congress and approved by
the President one of it's provisions re-
quired a two-cent revenue stamp to be
placed on each bank check, draft or GER
tificate Of deposit, not bearing interest.
drawn upon or issued by any bank trust
company or person, company or corpora
tion.
At the request of the bankers, and to
meet their convenience. system OF inn
printing the two-cent stamps upon the
checks was devised by the internal revenue
bureau. and virtually all of the banks had
their checks and drafts so imprinted This
was great saving of annoyance and trou-
bic to the bankers and their customers.
The act of March g. 1901, repealed the
tax on checks and drafts of the character
named. and the question Immediately arose
as to the redemption of imprinted stamps
on checks and drafts, as owners of such
checks and drafts were entitled to have re-
fund made for the value of the stamps inn
printed thereon.
Request Impossible to Grant.
AS was natural. the banks and other
owners of imprinted checks and drafts re-
quested the internal revenue bureau to
cancel each check in such a manner as to
render its further use possible and then
return to the original owner, and in this
way there would be a saving to the owner
or bank of the cost Of the stationery and
the binding of the checks and drafts Into
book form.
1t was stated frankly by the bureau in
response to these requests that under
EXISTING ex ain ig laws with regard to the filing
with the requests This imprinting was
granted only by reason Of the urgent re-
quest of the banks and on account Of the
great convenience it would be to them, and
nd 1oh f0 fla
bureau.
The banks had four months notice of the
repeal of the law requiring stamp tax on
checks, as the law repeating the tax was
passed March 2, 1901. While the law itself
did not go into effect until July 1 of this
year, yet very large quantity of these
cnecks have been sent in for redemption.
The extent to which they are being pre-
sented shows that large pecuniary loss will
1all upon banks and owners If the checks
and drafts are destroyed after refund is
made for the stamps thereon
Congregational Action Necessary.
The most careful consideration has been
given to the question as to the right of the
bureau to make refund for the value of
the stamps and then cancel and return the
checks and drafts. The conclusion reached
is that under the present existing laws 1t Is
not possible to return these Instruments
to the owners; but the bureau will proceed
as rapidly possible to consider these
claims, and redeem and make refund to the
owners OF the amounts due by reason Of
the stamps imprinted; will cancel these in
struments so as to allow their future use,
VIII store the various checks, and will re-
quest Congress at it's session in December
next to pass a law under which 1t will be
possible and legal to return these drafts
and checks to the claimants and owners.
1t Is understood that the banks will also
make the same request and in this way it
is believed, speedy action may be had
Commissioner Yerkes has had the matter
under consideration long time, and the
banks have exerted much pressure to se-
cure the return of the checks