The Saint Paul globe., 1902-10-17
GROSS INEQUALITY
OF THE
BUNGLED AMENDMENT


Every constitution and every court stands for equality OF
present Minnesota constitution stands for
eana and even proposed amendments require equality within
given class Of taxable subjects
people are called to vote Nov compes the widest inequality
1t is difficult to see how court could countenance these
INEQUALITIES for a moment.
per cent gross earnings tax on
City business different roads entering the Twin
Cities would vary radically
St Paul road the Chicago Great Western
the Wisconsin Central and six times as great over the Omaha
Within Minnesota the Wisconsin Central has only per
mileage; Burlington per
Il cent the Milwaukee and likewise the Chicago Great
in Minnesota.
ton is based the railway mileage operated provided in
the the Twin CyChicago
Central the earnings
from CcagoTwn City business will be subject to Minnesota
the gurngton cent will be g subject BIZ to taxation
the Milwaukee and the Chicago Great Western II
Omaha, per earnings from
chicagoTwn City traffic will bear the Minnesota earnings
Starting the same term-
the Omaha would be compelled proposed law to
as the Ga western the
three times as much as over the SIX times as
me he Wisconsin as 1xfp cnra eas ana seven
On $1,000 of gross earnings cbicago-Twn City
traffic the tax would amount to $6o ON the Wis
The tax would be 81 for the Burlington
would be s44o the same business over the North
$3.50 the Milwaukee and the Great Western
the Omaha.
$1,000 Of business between two points
varies all the from ST. to $12 according to the road the
hauled what the court call it
inequality and discrimination in taxation?
The discrimination would ultimately uriVe the
ChicagoTwin City business else compel to do
at sacrifice compared with the more favored COM
peting lines.
Again. take of freight Duluth the Twin Cities
shipped by of three roadshe Northern Pacific
Northern the Omaha.
the of freight would be local
traffic Cities is entirely
within Minnesota So the per cent tax would apply to 5he m
The Eastern railway branch Northern
Wisconsin into West Su
perior the DuluhTwn City business over this
road is thereby interstate.
sota only SO per City traffic
would be subject to the cent tax
80 of the Omaha mileage
operated of the earnings from
Twin Cities and the head of the lakes IS
to Minnesota earnings tax
the Northern Pacific $1,000 of this
bears tax of $4o over the Great Northern s ana
Omaha only $2 This would be prauca 10
Pacifcs business between the Twin Cities and the
handicap would give the business
to roads.
Twin City Fargo exhibits similar inequality Of
taxation.
Under present cent of this interstate bus
hauled within Minnesota
except for miles of the haul
But under proposed the Van SAINT admin
haul to Fargo while the North
would collect taxes from only 19 per cent and
Milwaukee still less only II per cent steao Vi W
present cent
The state about 70 cent of it's
the Minnesota border While the IN
equality between several roads would be source
of traffic disturbance and gross injustice
inequality would be that the supreme court
invalid, that the entire
gross from which the state now derives SooVo
would be undermined ana oestroyeo.