The Glenwood post., 1906-11-24
NEEDED CHANGES
RECOMMENDED BY ATTORNEY
GENERAL OF COLORADO.
TO SAVE INHERITANCE TAX
Should Be Special Clerk in Auditors
Office-ShouId Change Makeup Of
State Land Board-Raiiroads should
Be exempted From Flat Tax Law.

State Land Board-Raiiroads should
Be exempted From Flat Tax Law.
Denver. - With recommendations
that the State Land Board be changed
entirely in its organization: that
clerk be appointed in the auditors Of
fee to look after Inheritance tax col
lections; that the law be changed and
that law be enacted compelling all
corporations organized under the laws
of the state to be explicit In the pur-
poses of their organization, Attorney
General N. c. Miller submits his bien-
NAL report to Governor Mcdonald.
In it Mr. Miller states that while for
merly the criminal work of his office
was the most important, 1t is not so
now. 1.-THE work that requires the mosS
time" he says, relates to the civil law.
For instance the revenue act imposing
the Inheritance tax has made an i'm
mense amount of labor for this office.
Although the law imposes no duty on
this office to look after the collection
of the inheritance tax, yet the governor
has the right to direct the attorney gen.
eral to take care of all suits in which
the state has an interest, and this has
been done by written order.
in my judgment the work arising
from the inheritance tax law is becom
ing too large and important to be han.
died in this way. The bookkeeping and
auditing department of the state is in
the auditors office, and my judgment
Is that clerk should be provided who
has authority to examine all papers and
inquire into all proceedings concerning
inheritance tax. When matters appear
which should be litigated the auditor
has the authority to call upon the attor
rey general to take charge"
In discussing the land board the at
torney general suggests a complete
change. AT present the board is mads
up of the governor, the attorney gen.
erai, secretary of state and the state
superintendent of public instruction.
There are employed by the board reg
lister, a deputy and chief appraiser
During the biennial period under Gov
ernor Orman the revenues for tha
state from its lands were s325,000. This
increased to s515,OOO under Governor
Peabody, and by the end of the present
biennial period will have increased to
$500, 900, so that the work of the board
is constantly growing.
Mr.. Miller suggests that three per.
sons could be employed at very little
more than is paid now to the register
and his assistants, to devote their ell.
tire time to the work and take it en-.
tirely from the control of the otherCl
state officers, This, he believes, would
mean vast saving to the state as the
revenues arising from the business
could be made much larger if it were
looked after closely.
Railroad corporations, Mr.. Miller
says, should be taxed upon their mile.
age in the state, and not upon their TO.
tai capitalization as is provided for in
the flat tax law. All other corpora.
tions. he says, should be taxed on their
total capitalization, as the law pro,
Vides. To carry out this suggestion
would necessitate a slight change in
the law, and this is recommended.
Other recommendations are given un.
Ger the discussion on corporations. One
is that law should be enacted com
pellins all domestic corporations to be
specific as to the purposes for which
they are organized. Also that domes.
tic corporations should be required to
have an agent upon whom all papers
could be served