The independent., 1907-01-24

except that they go on alphabetically
instead of according to party strength
as here, and that, of course there is
no device for inducing voters to swal-
low yellow dogs and all, the chief OBJ
| ject of the party circle. The party cir
Gle is apparently to be the main point
of conflict, the last stand of the po-
! litical manipulation.
Two special state tax commission re-
ports have been made to legislatures
since the beginning Of the year A
California commission on revenue and
| taxation was created in 1905, to study
means of improving this system in
vogue in that state, and a like COM
mission has just submitted to the New
York legislature report said to have
been written by Professor Seligman.
The conditions in the two states were
markedly different, but the two reports
run remarkably close together in the
| principles involved, and agree closely
with the most generally accepted con-
clusions of economists who have made
a special study of taxation.
The first conclusion of the Cali
! fornia commission is that the state
general property tax should be abol-
ished 1t is full Of inequalities. Per-
sonal property escapes taxation large
ly, and the more personal property a
person has the more largely it escapes.
The assessed value of personal prop
erty in the state is now hardly greater
than it was a generation ago. Con-
cealable personal property is given an
advantage over property less easily
| concealed. The general system Of prop
erty tax involves inequalities between
sections between city and country
between different lines Of business. The
tax the farmers pay in California is
equivalent to an income tax of 10 per
cent, the commission declares, while
the manufacturers of the state pay
the equivalent Of only 2 per cent on
their incomes.
SO far as personal property goes,
the New York commission takes ex-
actly the same ground as the Cali
fornia commission. The personal prop
erty tax, 1T declares, puts a premium
on perjury and discriminates heavily
in favor of the rich. 1t Injuries in
vestment and business, and yet yields
an amount of revenue altogether dis
proportionate to the evil it involves.
If localities, where people know each
others affairs well enough to make
evasion of the personal property tax
difficult, wish to continue it for local
purposes, the commission would grant
them the right, but it advises against
making it anything more than op-
tional.
The Californians propose as reme-
dy what others of the more advanced
states have already done, the localizing
of the property tax, leaving the state
to derive it's revenues from franchise
taxes and others that are general in
hno Of 1a roll
roads through a levy on their gross
receipts is recommended, the proceeds
to go to the state. Real estate would
then be taxed only by the county or
municipal organization, doing away
with the possibility Of sectional dis
examinations. The localizing Of real
estate is the real beneficiary of local
public improvements and competent
local administration, whether it be
town or country property. 1t applies
also the principle of local home rule to
the direct taxation of the state. On
the other hand, the commission rea-
sons, the right to do business that is
enjoyed by corporation is privilege
granted by the state, and not by the
cities and counties. Therefore, any
tax that may be levied upon the reve-
nues derived from the enjoyment and
use of the state privileges used by
corporations, especially public service
corporations ought to be paid into the
state treasury for the support of the
state government. They apply this
proposition to railroad, express, street
railway. light. heat and power, tele-
graph and telephone, banking anu in
surance companies.
Both OF these reports were drawn by
able men I'm search of practicable
ideal of state and local taxation. In
neither state is there believed 10 be
much chance to secure the enactment
of the recommendation into law. II
Is one thing 10 conceive system OF
taxation that liz fair TO everybody, and
another thing 10 get IL made into law
by a Legislative body where the In
flnence OF everybody Is By no means