Morris tribune., 1909-03-06
TAX MEASURES
In LEGISLATURE
BILL. TO EXEMPT CREDITS
FROM TAXATION.
A Meritorious Measure in Con-
nection with an Income Tax
Question of its Constitutional
ity---The Initiative and Refer
endum---Pre-Election Promises
a Joke.
(Heatwo1e's Legislative Letter.)

(Heatwole's Legislative Letter)
st. Paul, March 4, 1909.-The house
of representatives has talked much
this past week, but done little. While
apparent progress has been made or
two bills over which there was good
deal of debate, there is every reason
to believe that neither of them will
pass the house. I refer to the Stuart
bill exempting credits from taxation
and the Bendixen bill, designed to
prevent discrimination in the price OF
grain and requiring tnat, transporta
tion considered, the price paid at al
points shall be uniform. The latter
was unfayorably reported out of the
committee to which it had been re-
ferred, but got hearing on a minor
ity report recommending it for pass
age. The question of it's constitution
ality having been raised, it was re-
ferred to the judiciary committee for
it's opinion on that subject. This is
likely to prove adverse, but wheth er
or not there seems little disposition
on the part of the house to approve
the bill.
The Stuart bill was far more I'M
portant measure, and if the other tax
measures which he has proposed were
with it to become law am not sure
that the system of levying taxes in
the State would not be improved.
There would be small objection to ex-
empting credits from taxation, the
burden of which is too often shifted
to the shoulders of the borrower if in
comes were taxed, as Mr.. Stuart pro-
poses in another bill, and the State
could get at the profits from the cred
it's in another way. But the legisla-
ture is little likely to impose an in
come tax at this time, and while the
exemption of credits from taxation is
approved by tax experts, taken in
connection with other methods of
raising a revenue, by itself it looks
like very one sided proposition. =,
The credits it is proposed by Mr..
Stuart to exempt from taxation con-
sist of county, township and munici-
pal bonds, certificates of deposit,
notes of hand, mortgages and the
like, and he also proposes to repeal
the mortgage registry tax law enact
ed at the last session. The actual
value of the credits it is proposed to
exempt from taxation is unknown,
according to Mr.. Stuart, but five or
six millions have never been listed for
taxation. The amount of them SUBJ
iect to a tax if the law were enforced
was estimated by Mr.. Nolan at be-
tween O,OOO, 900 and $50, 900, and
by Mr.. Haugland at not less than
800, ,oOO, 900, and it is not improbable
that Mr.. Haugland's figures are near
er right than Mr.. Nolan's. 4
Mr.. Nolan led the fight on the Stu
art bill, which had been reported out
of the tax committee with favorable
recommendation by majority of one.
Mr.. Dalzell, the chairman, giving the
casting vote in favor of the passage.
Mr. No1or xr,o q ohixy cooopdo1 hr NV
Haugland and Mr.. Thaver. Mr.. No
lan's contention was that the effect
of the bill would be to put greater
burden on tangible property, such as
that on which the farmer is taxed, to
the manifest advantage of the man
with the "big wad." While admitting
that sometimes the debtor was COM
PEELED to pay the taxes the law de-
signed to levy on the creditor, he de-
MED that this was uniformly the case,
"Who" he asked, 'sare the men who
are asking us to repeal these taxes
on credits. Are the debtors coming
to this legislature with that plea? Are
the farmers of the State demanding
from their representatives that bonds
and mortgages shall not be taxed?
No. The pressure is coming from an
entirely different quarter-from the
men who hold these credits and are
fearful lest more rigid enforcement
of the law by the tax commission
shall result in compelling them to pay
the taxes they have for years been
successful in dodging".
Mr.. Hauglaud covered much the