The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1908-10-27

nr0n0rCY
purpose and personal property to an
amount not exceeding in value two hum
dred dollars for each Individual. shall, by
general laws, be exempt from taxation.
"sectfon 4, Laws shall be passed for
taxing the notes and bills discounted or
purchased, moneys loaned, and all otner
property, effects, or dues of every de-
scription, of all banks and Of all bank
ers, SO that all property employed In
banking shall always be subject to a tax
alton equal to that imposed on the prop
erty of individuals.
I ''section II. The legislature may i'm
pose, or provide for the imposition Of, up
on the property within this state of any
and all owners or operators, whether cor
porate or Individual, or otherwise, Of any
and all sleeping, parlor and drawing room
cars, or any or either Of the same. which
run in into or through this state; also
upon the property within this state of
any and all telegraph and telephone COM
panies, or owners, whose lines are in, or
extend in, into or through this state; also
upon the property within this state OF
eli express companies, or owners, or any
or either Of the same, doing business in
this state: also upon the property within
this state of all domestic insurance COM
panies of this state of any kind; also
upon the property within this state Of any
ana all foreign insurance companies doing
upon the property within this state Of az
owners or operators Of any and all mines
or of mineral ores situated in this state;
also upon the property within this state
OF all boom companies or owners, and OF
all snip builders or owners doing business
In this state or having port therein
provided, that this act shall not apply
to property owned by railroad companies,
their lands and other property; and upon
ho - Of
companies or Owners,-a tax as uniform
as reasonably may be with the taxes i'm
posed upon similar property in said state,
or upon the earnings thereof within TINS
state, but may be graded or progressive
OF both, and in providing for such tax, or
III providing for ascertaining the just and
true value of such property, it shall be
competent for the legislature in either
or all such cases. to impose such tax
upon any or all property thereof within
this state, and in either case by taxing
as the basis of such imposition the pro-
portionate business earnings, mileage OF
quantity of production or property now
or hereafter existing of any such com.
panies, persons or owners, transacted or
existing in this state, in relation to the
entire business, mileage or quantity OF
production or property of such COM
panies, persons or owners as aforesaid;
or in such other manner, or py such
other method as the legislature may de-
termine; but the proceeds of such taxes
upon mining property shall be olstr'ouItu
between the state and the various pol1t-
ical subdivisions thereof wherein the
same is situated, in the same proportion
as the proceeds Of taxes upon real prop
erty are distributed: Provided further,
that nothing in this act contained shall
operate to authorize the assessment or
taxation Of any farm land or ordinary
L,,r;,
any such corporation, person, hrm or
company except in the manner PROVIDED
by the ordinary methods of taxation
and to substitute therefor the following:
''sec: I. The power of taxation shah
never be surrendered, suspended or con-
tracted away. Taxes shall be uniform
upon the same class of subjects, and
shall be levied and collected for pupllc
purposes, but public burying grounds
public school houses, public hospitals,
academies, colleges. universities, and an
seminaries of learning. all churches,
church property used for religious pur-
poses, and houses of worship, institutions
of purely public charity, and pubnc
property used exclusively for any public
purpose, shall be exempt from taxation,
and there may be exempted from taxa
ton personal property not exceeding IN
value 5000 for each household, Individual
or head Of a family, as the legislature
may determine. But the legislature may
authorize municipal corporations to levy
and collect assessments for local I'M
provements upon property benenteo
thereby without regard to a cash Valua-
ton, and nothing herein contained shall
be construed to affect, modify or repeal
any existing law providing for the taxa
ton of the gross earnings of railroads.
This proposed constitutional amend.
ment was submitted and voted upon at
the last election and was declared car.
ried. But contest was Instituted by In
terested parties, claiming that the amend
ment was not carried. That contest IS
now pending in the courts and it was on
that account that the legislature decided
to re- submit the amendment to the peo-
pie, so that however the contest may be
decided, the next legislature may have
the power granted by the amendment
For the purpose OF discussing the effect
of the amendment ! will assume that the
same amendment submitted at the last
election, did not carry.
The purpose and effect of this amend.
ment would be to greatly enlarge tho
power of the legislature with reference
to the subject of taxation. Section one
ID as 1t now stands provides that all
taxes imposed shall be equal-as near as
may be-on all forms of property, and all
property upon which tax is imposed 70
required to have a CASH VALUATION
equaIized throughout the state.
Section two (2) as 1t now stands re.
qufres the legislature to levy the neces.
sary taxes annually to defray the ex-
penses of the state. That Is tho duty Of
the legislature without any constitutional
direction.
Section three ~ as It now stands pro-
vldes that all real and personal property,
lind; ToEHlTC
VEsTMENTs IN BONDS AND STOCKS,
shall be assessed according to their true
value in money.
Section four (4) as It now stands pro-
vIdes that property employed in banking
shall be sub ect to a tax equal to that
imposed on other property. This is only
a repetition of the requirements Of Sec.
tions one (D and three ~, as no rational
person would claim that banking capital
should be exempt from taxation.
Section seventeen (17) as it now stands
Is not easy to understand, but it was In
tended by that section to relieve from the
operation of sections one (D and three
(3), above quoted, property of the classes
therein enumerated, SO that gross earn
ngs tax could be applied thereto instead
Of direct taxation.
Owing to the provisions of sections one
(D and three (3) of the present Constl-
tuition many amendments were from time |
10 time added so as to permit taxes to be
imposed on specific kinds Of property
otherwise than upon cash valuation |
squalized throughout the state. We have !
among these exceptions railroad gross |
earnings taxes; municipal frontage taxes;
inheritance taxes; and the gross earnings !
taxes authorized by said section seven |
teen co.
Several exemptions from taxation are |
also provided for, but as these exemp.
SS@& aba,
| will make no further ref |
.rence to them.