The Maui news. [volume] (Wailuku, Maui, H.I.) 1900-current, 1908-12-12
COhen'S Views
On Taxation
Wants Rates Increased to
liz Percent.

Honorable Joel Cohen, during
his recent visit to Hilo, gave some
particulars of the ideas he has been
incubating on the land and taxa
tion questions In an interview
with the Hawaii Herald he is quo
/, ted as follows.
"As to taxation, the plantations
pay one per cent. upon the valua
ton of their property. This is not
enough to meet the demands of
government. The tax assessor. is
expected to make good so he taxes
the small property holder on a va
luation of two to one. For instance
where plantation property may be
valued at $1,000, the small holder
who owns land of equal value with
the plantation is taxed IN an as
sessed value of $1,000 for his little
piece. The government needs the
money, and even then there are
not enough small property owners
to make up the deficiency, so we
run behind as we are doing at the
present time.
"Take Eva plantation, as an ex-
ample, which pays. one per cent. on
/, a valuation of $5,5O0,00 that is
sos, 900, and an income tax of s16,-
900, making its total tax amount
, to S7l 900 If instead of taxing
the small man on basis of double
}, the property valuation that Eva
, pays, the assessed value WEI divid-
ed equally and the tax rate raised to
1-2 per cent, the Eva would pay
SS2, 800, difference OF s1l, 800.
This will give an equalization of
assessment, the same tax rate for
, all, but it would result in large
I revenue for the Territory 1t
would not be any hardship upon
Eva as the increase of Sll 800 in
5 its taxes would only be one fifth of
one per cent. upon its capital
stock. 1t would be a homeopathic
t dose.
another thing that | find is
that the big men practically pay
| no income tax That is direct
: contribution to the revenue from
: the small man ard, as | under
, stand it, Il charge upon his labor.
I he big men, who own the large
: blocks of sugar stock, claim that
: they pay their income tax indirect.
ly through the company which is
. assessed on its stock. Then again
there are the owners of our Hawa-
: iian stocks, vino live away from
Y here on incomes derived from their
: Investments on these Islands. They
I have their homes on the mainland
e or IN Europe. They make a small
2 payment to the revenue on the
: stock they hold but do nothing else
S whatever to benefit these islands,
r only draining them of large sums
of money.
Y The income tax has been held
# to be unconstitutional in those
t Stats where it has been tested, and
9 my opinion is that it is unconsti-
= tutional. Here it is not an income
S tax but a tax on labor. Men who
s have incomes, large incomes, dc
: not pay any such tax as the law
g calls for, But the man who sells
= his labor, even at Il rate of foul
II dollars day, has to pay 1t. The
clerk, the salesman, the bookkeepel
IS all sell their labor and they are
n the ones who pay the income tax
a Any man who is earning wages is
j. a laborer. He sells his labor fol
. those wages and he is the only
q one who pays income tax, The
e laborer is said to be worthy of his
Il hire. Then why not let him keel
q his hire instead of taking a part o
it for taxes just because he is la
borer.