Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1905-11-29
Argument in Favor of RaiSing
Revenues by. Indirect
Taxation
Candidate for Secretary Of
State Expresses Himself on
Vital Issue

Interview with T. T. wrightman.)
The following resolutions adopted
by the farmers and shippers congress,
held under the auspices Of the william.
ottc Valley Development League, at
McMinnville, Or, November IL, 1905,
have been submitted to me for an opin-
ions
"Resolvcd, that we az land owners
and business men In mass convention
assembled protest against the oontin-
uauco Of the present system, and ne We
sincerely believe the present systcm
is an unjust one 10 the producers and
owners Of farms homes and personal
property who produce and own the tam
giblo wealth Of tho state.
RESOLVED that az least one.half Of
tho state revenue should be doriovd
from indirect sources and intangible
property Of corporations and gross
earnings Of tho aamo inheritance tax
-, income taxes, taxes on stocks and
bonds.
Resolved that taxation should be
oxtoudcd IN that direction 90 ~ 90 re'
duco tho direct taxes for state pur'
poses 20 not over throo mills per an
mum, and that all revenues required
above that limit bo obtained by indi'
rect taxation along tho lines above IN
dicatod
RESOLVED that tho taxation com
mitteo OF the Willamette Valley De.
velopmcht League be requested TO pro
pare a tax code, embodying tho spirit
Of theae resolutions 10 tho end that In
stead Of tho tangible property Of the
state paying avesiSths Of tho state
taxes aud tho intangible property one
sixth, that tho burdens be equally a.
vided between direct and indirect tax
alton, and that such bill when ap.
proved by the committee and officers
Of the league be and the same be sub
mitted 10 the people by the initia'
tive"
The question Of revenue FOR the sup
port Of governments, national, state,
county and municipal, has always been
ono which has taxed the brains OF our
law makers, That taxation In order
20 be just must be equal is undisput,
ed, aud upon this basis or foundation
all revenue laws, or laws for the sup
port Of our government should and
must be drawn.
Il has been found practicable and re
suited satisfactorily 20 the people that
I the raising OF revenue for the support
of our national government be kept
separate and apart from, and raised
in other and different WAYS than that
Of our state revenues, and il is the
opinion Of many that were il possible
10 separate the manner Of raising the
revenue for support Of tho state gov
ernment from that Of counties and mu-
inequalities, the same or better results
would accrue, The present system Of
computation Of state tax due from each
county, upon a proportion that a five
year average of the amount Of ex-
penditure Of each county for said pen
iod bears TO the total amount Of expen-
ditures In all the counties of the state,
is unfair, as in counties which happen
20 have eXtravagant administrations
or counties which are required to build
public buildings or other public i'm
lprovements, except roads, the tax pay.
ers Of such counties are penalized
therefore by having TO pay a greater
amount of the state tax, in addition
10 increased local taxes, than a eoun-
| ~ where the administration is more
conservative and its public buildings
are already erected, although the last
named county may be far more wealthy
in values of property.
Under the old law where the amount
Of state tax paid by each county was
estimated from the total value Of tax
able property as shown by the assess
ment OF the counties, great injustice
resulted in counties whose assessor re
turned just and true assessment Of
the values Of property in the county,
Tor the reason that many county as
SCISSORS, in order to reduce the amount
OF state taxes due from his county.
would assess property at a very low