Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1909-03-27

Mr.. ADDITIONS: I am not prepared to do
| SO. would be willing that the gentleman
| from Watervlle should take any town if
he will figure it out on the same rate of
| taxation.
| Speaker, believe that the House of Rep
resentatives and the people of the State
| of Maine have been looking for this tax
commission to devise some means where
| by more revenue could be obtained from
| the wild lands to help run the machinery
| of the State government. I realize that
| this tax problem is a knotty one. I can
| say, as did one of the members of the
taxation committee, that I from the start
was opposed to the way this money was
distributed. believe every child of school
age, whether located in a village, town.
or in a camp of some squatter in the back
| woods of Maine, should receive the same
amount of money toward his or her edu-
cation, and for that reason I favor this
amendment. In looking over the figures
| see that our town of Presque Isle under
| this proposed bill would be obliged to
raise the sum of $13,SOO and in some of
| the towns and cities of the State this
| law would result in flooding them with
more money that they would have to use
for school purposes than they would
know what to do with
| Mr.. McLAlN of Bremen: Mr. Speak,
er, | wish to correct an impression
which the gentleman from Waterville
| might have made this forenoon when
| he stated that this measure which
presented was a Grange bill, and did
M rat Ia. t1n nd Ae-T
derstand it, the Grange bill calls for a
| two mill tax, one mill for schools to
be apportioned to the cities and towns
according to the scholars enrolled and
one mill for roads apportioned accord
| ing to the mileage. Now had the COM
mittee passed the Grange bill we would
| have got out of the wild land fellows
| just half a mill more than this COM
mittee would get Now this amend
ment of mine is not the Grange bill at
all. This amendment | offered after
consulting with the State superintend
| ent Of schools | should have made
| the amendment one mill instead Of
| one-half of one mill, but / consulted
with some of the older members of the
House and Senate and they said that
| the measure would not get through the
Senate: and | had always rather take
| half a loaf than none, so made it one
| half a mill instead of one mill. The
| last Legislature increased the mill tax
one half mill and with this increase
we will have doubled the mill tax. /
did not raise any question as to the
method of assessment: | agree with the
| bill in that respect, that the assessment
| is all right. The only question | rails
| ed was as to the distribution. | claim
| that after this money has been as
sessed and collected it has become the
property of the State of Maine, and to
| my mind the State stands to the sew
eral cities and towns just the same
as AM Individual stands in his town
| that is, that a man is assessed in mis-
town according to his property. He
NAV have a few scholars, he may not
have any If he is Il large tax payer
and has no scholars, i is evident that
his tax helps to educdte the. small tax
payers children. 10 my mind the
rich cities and towns in this State
should help the poor towns and cities
to educate their children. | had just
as soon you wouldmake it a mill ara
Il half, but distribute it equally; give
it to the scholars 4!
Mr.. PATTANGALL: Mr.. Speaker.
the gentleman from Augusta raised the
point that if this particular act should
be declared to be unconstitutional 1t
would vitiatA the entire assessment oil
taxes throughout the State for year
ITDon that point l seriously differ with
him. In my opinion this law IS constl-
tutional. If it were decided that this
was unconstitutional the simple result
would be that no tax would be assessed
under ID after that. and that the state
would have taken from the towns for
one wear q certain amount of money
which it would necessarily return to
them, 1t could affect no local assess
ment. Under this bill no tax is as
sesseh: it is simply a separate amount
raised by the State for certain pur-
pose.
I,want to suggest this to YOU The
amount raised by taxation on the
whole state for school purposes gives
back to the towns a portion OF 1t ac-
cording to the valuation, by our plan
hut it does not go back to the town TO
do what they want to do with. 1t is
mot money paid back to the towns 10
spend in any way they see fit. 1t IS q
trust fund uiStrlDuteu III IL GEL ldih NoE
to the towns, those towns having the
privilege of spending it for schools ana
for nothing else. 1t is an increase OF
the school fund and a direction as 70
how the school fund should he spent
Now il has been said that school mon
CIV should be spent according to schooi
ncpul,tion and in no other way. / agree
with YOU M to certain limit. ana IL
You will use figures and not general
tiles YOU will not go beyond certain
limit on that proposition. Let me Illus
trate. You say. tax the property where
it is ard pay the children where they
are That sounds well. We say, tax
the rich cities to help the poor towns.
Figure il for yourselves and you VIII
find if YOU apply your mill tax any FUR
Their than you have that mere is one
result you will get. You take from the
CITY of Portland by a half mill some
thing like $500. You give money by
that half mill to the city Of Biddeford
to quite an extent Portland taxes her
self four mills on a dollar nearly 10
support her schools today; Biddeford
taxes herself IL mills. Do you thlnk
if is equality To take any more from
il RlUdpfOrO'