Morris tribune., 1906-12-29
FOR REFORM
IN TAXATION
URGES LOCAL OPTION SCHEME
OF TAXATION.
lawson Purdy, of New York, points
to Minnesota as Example for
Ohio and Favors Local Option
Result of /" Wide-Open" Con-
Stitution.

Minnesota's action in passing a
wide-open tax amendment to the
state constitution was held up to the
emulation of Ohio by Lawson Purdy,
the New York taxation expert, in a
speech at Columbus, last Thursday.
Lis remarks were of special interest
and value to Minnesota, because he
not only reviewed the situation here,
but discussed the sort of tax legisla-
ton that ought to follow the removal
of constitutional restrictions. For
his reason The Journal gives space to
most of Mr.. Purdy's address.
The speech was delivered at the an
nual meeting Of the Ohio Board of
Commerce, an organization that has
grown in thirteen years to great things
and has for it's avowed purpose to
make Ohio ''the best state in which
TO make living, to own property and
TO have your home" The stare now
has tax commission, but is strug-
Cling under the same antiquated form
of constitution from which Minnesota
has just escaped. The taxation ques-
ton was taken up Thursday evening
and Carleton L. Wallace of Mime
apolis attended and took part in the
discussion.
Mr.. Purdy first took up the argu-
ment against state tax based entire
ly on local assessments. He said it
rad been found the local assessors
would list property at less than it's
truevalue, in order that their districts
might bear less than their just portion
of the state tax. Also, while disobey-
ing the law in that regard the officials
were not held TO any just or legal
standard and gross inequalities result
ed. AS property in the rural districts
is easier to reach for taxation, they
are made to bear moro than their just
share OF the state tax
The scheme Of raising all state reve-
nue. by special taxes leads TO extrava-
gance or poverty, said Mr.. Purdy, be-
cause it has no elasticity. When times
were hard Pennsy wanna s special taxes
fell off and the schools mad TO be cut
down. Now the special taxes enrich
the state treasury to repletion and the
S9,O00,000 spent Tor decorating and
furnishing the capitol al Harrisburg is
a result. In New York in 1894 the
total state revenue was S13,000,00o of
which only one third came from
special taxes. This year the revenue
was $27, OOO,0O all derived from
special taxes, and plans are being
made to increase it to $33, 100000.
Some highly Objectionable taxes have
been levied to swell this total. So
while it is true that certain assess
ments can be better made by a state
board, yet there should always be
good margin between the revenue
derived from special taxes and the
total revenue OF the state. On this
point Mr.. Purdy quoted Professor R.
A. Seligman of Columbia university,
the leading authority on taxation in
the country. Professor Seligman
favored special state taxes but not the
raising of all revenue by state taxes,
as New York is now doing, This re-
sulos in rural legislators leVying
special taxes that will fall hard on the
cities such as the tax on stock sales
recently imposed. To avoid this and
to give the element Of elasticity, there
is the scheme suggested by the New
York Tax Reform association and
put in partial operation in the state
of Oregon. The scheme, which has
become known as ''the Purdy plan,"