The Greenville journal. [volume] (Greenville, Ohio) 1850-1918, 1907-05-09
MORE TAX IDEAS
State Senator Howe Talks On Three
General Features.
Home Rule, ouadrennlal Property
Valuations and Franchise Taxes Are
Subjects He Discusses.

Valuations and Franchise Taxes Are
Subjects He Discusses.
IAN address before the Ohio Tax
Commission by Senator Frederick C.
Howe. Hearing March 12, l9O7D
| have not attempted in this argu
ment to take up the subject in all
Of its bearings. have been content
with three general features: The
taxation of those corporations that
enjoy franchises, the question of the
decennial valuation of property, ad-
vocating a re-valuatinn of real prop
erty in the state every four years,
and local options or local home rule
in taxation.
The taxation of corporations, of
competitive character seems to me to
be very adequately cared for in the
Willis BILL but the other class, the
franchise corporations, steam rail
roads, telegraphs, telephones, express
companies, street railways, gas, cleo
trio lighting, water companies, all of
which are privileged enterprises,
whose value exists because of a grant
from the city, or some privileges
which they enjoy from the state. Cor
Horations Of this sort are both it,
adequately taxed as compared with
the same class of property in other
states.
The present method of valuation of
railroads was adopted many years
ago, possibly at the time the cOnstitu-
tion was adopted, when there was no
very great difference in property. 1t
was all visible and accessible. We
got our taxing system under those
circumstances and we have not sub
stantially altered it from that day to
this In the meantime immense cor
porations have come into existence,
and are still taxed on what is really
scrap basis, they are assessed piece
meal. The assessment of railroad is
made by the county auditors. There
is no attempt under the law to get at
the railroad as a unit, as complete
it's earning capacity; no attempt to
get at its stock and bond value; no
attempt to reach its franchise at all.
The same is true of street railways,
gas companies and all franchise cor
porations.
In many other states, probably dozen
or fifteen, the Ohio method of Valuing
merely the physical property has been
abandoned for what Is generally spoken
of as the franchise tax, The interstate
commerce commission make report OF
the amount of taxes paid by the railroads
in the United States, including excise.
license real estae. or any tax which they
nav. From the report of 1905, which is
found in Statistics of railways, page 100,
it appears that the railways of Massa-
chusetts for instance, pay H,472 per
mile of single track; of Connecticut,
$1,259; Rhode Island, $l.O49; District of
Columbia, $l,349; and of New Jersey,
where the entire state seems to be or
ganzed In a movement for taxation OF
railways--it has been the most important
issue In their politics for two or three
years-and so far as | know nobody
questions but what the railways there
are very loWly taxed-but in New Jersey
they pay $s48.OO per mile single track;
while in Ohio, on the other hand the to-
tai tax on the railways is $47S.0O per mile
single track.
The DecennlaI Valuation Of Property.
At the present time we assess real
property once every ten years. 1t Is as
sssed by local appraisers elected from
every ward and township. That is sur
10
agricultural state there We're no great
cities, and 1t was probably substantially
lust In New York, and many of the
states, instead of assessing land and i'm
provementS every ten years, they are as
sessed every year. In almost all states /
know they assess at least once in every
three years We assess once in every
ten years. At the last session Of the
assembly | asked the auditors of a num-
ber of counties to aid me in the prepara-
ton of bill dealing with this question:
and from whatever section or county
they came they told the same story, that
the last appraisement of 1900 was most
UNEQUAL. They told OF property on oppo-
site sides of the same street assessed at
10 per cent and some at 100 per cent OF
its value. But ten years is not often
enough to assess property which is chang
ing in value as rapidly as much of the
lect rightly, Sc towns or cities We prob
ably have more big towns than any
state in the Union, ranging from half
million down to $4,000. In these big cities
land values change very rapidly: and yet
under our laws today there is no means
by which land can be gotten on the tax
duplicate.
Home Rule In Taxation.
Some years ago there was submitted to
the voters of this state a constitutional
amendment which exempted securities of
counties and cities from taxation. At the
last session of the assembly resolution
was introduced to put the constitution
back In it's former condition. At the
same time the Ohio State Board of Com
merce had resolution which it was urg-
ing, providing for some sort Of classlfca-
ton of property, so that it would be pos
sible for us to 10 as they do in Pennsyl-
vana where they put personal property
on the duplicate at mills, and l think
they get as big a revenue at mills as
we do at 20.
| worked over that measure with some
members Of the senate last winter and
finally drafted substitute to the tax
clause OF the constitution, Article xii, Sec
ton ., which adds to the section as 1t
existed up to the time Of the last amend
ment, provision for local option 1t leaves
the constitutional provision just as 1t IL
at the present time; but adds the proviso
that electors Of any county may classify
property and tax 1t at such a rate as
they may see fit or exempt 1t from taxa
ton altogether. The purpose of that Is
to give each county absolute control over
taxation, to give them full authority to
do with 1t as they will, to exempt such
property as they see ft and work out
the local questions and relieve the legis-
lature II the counties believe they can
reduce the rate of interest they pay on
mortgages by eXempting them, they can
10 1t; II they wish to tax them at mills
they can do IT, II they believe they can
reach personal property by placing 1t on
the tax duplicate at 4 mills or mills or
anu ta thav aaa Ar than oan do f& hv