The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-04-30
law WORKS we'll
Legacies and SUGGESTIONS Act Is
a Great Success.
About $4,000 Due State Under
Terms of New Measure.
KANSAS is THE GAMER
Money VIII Pour into Treasury
From Collections.
Topeka Not Contributing Much
to New Estate Fund.

| Inc nrSC year or the legacl6S ana sue
cessions act or the Kansas inheritance
law has proven it successful. In
ventories of 1000 estates have been
| turned in to the tax commissioners and
$4,000 is certified there as due the
state, or enough to pay the entire ex-
| penses of the office three or four times
! over.
The inheritance tax is peculiar in
| that it depends on no assessments or
valuations made year by year but Is
| based on the inventories Of all estates
sent in by the probate judges of the
counties All estates are reported in
whether they will be taxable or not I'M
| der certain provisions of the law and
| the commissioners determine tho
amount due, if any.
How does it work? 1t has simply
swamped the whole office" said Clar-
ence Smith, secretary of the commits
sion. 1T is working fine; $4,000 is al
| ready certified due on 1000 estates. Mr..
Howe keeps a stenographer busy seven
hours at a time on it. That tax alone
would pay the expenses OF the office
three times over
And yet the law exempts any legacies
to charitable, beneficial, literary, scien-
tific religious or educational inStitu-
lions. There is clause, however,
which tends to balance that allowance
This is the provision that any glrt OF
grant made year before death snaIl
be deemed as in contemplation of death
and shall be taxable the same as if in
cluded in the estate. Thus it will he
impossible to evade the application IF
the tax unless one should contemplate
death more than year before 1t comes.
Passed in 1909.
The inheritance tax law which
passed the last legislature and is sec
ton 1855 Of the Statutes of 1909 d.
vides the per cent of tax to be collect
ed according to three relations to the
deceased. The first class includes
fathers. mothers. sons and daughters.
husbands and wives. and the tax is L
per cent on amounts over $4,000 up
to $685. 900 and increasing to per cent
in excess of 100000. Glass B includes
sisters and brothers. nephews and
nieces and assesses a tax of per
cent on amounts above $1,000, increas-
ing to 121A per cent at the half mill
lion mark. Glass c pertains to all
others and begins with per cent on
any amount, increasing to 15 per cent.
The tax is lien on the estate
The law became operative March 16.
1909, and though its general operation
is highly successful as viewed by the
state tax commissioners. Shawnee
county and Topeka have not contrib
uted much according to Probate
Judge Schoch, in spite Of the deaths of
many supposedly very well-to-do peo-
pie.
Treasurer Medlicott has collected
but two legacy taxes for the state as
YET. An amount of $115.62 on the
estate of Clarissa A. Morton, willed to
a niece, Mary F. Randolph, is certified
back but not paid. The collections are
1882 on the estate of Ulla Sternberg
as per cent on her estate to her
husband, and $66.e3 on the estate of
Chas NJ Edison as 1 per cent of his
estate to his wife.
Payne Escaped Tax.
90 ho
probate court shows that the estate of
J. c.. Payne. who died wealthy. es-
capped the tax few days. A strange
circumstance IS in the matter of the
at $500 and willed to an adopted
daughter. This daughter can not be
found and the county may have to take
the money. The John W. Moore
estate, because left to Washburn col
lege. escapes the tax. The $4,000
estate of Mary Doran and the $4,000
one of P. J. NJ. Burkett have not been
held taxable.
Samson Died InsoIvent
The Chas H. Samson estate. sup
posed to be large and heavily taxable.
was found to be inSolvent. The George
D. Lyle estate was found so encum-
bered as to reduce it below the $1,000
mark. The estate of L. Van Hook will
pay on $4,000. So will the w. NJ.
Ream estate Of some $4,000. The
estate Of W. H Forbes. left to broth
ers and sisters and valued at $4,000,
will pay at least on part under the
second class. The Bradford Miller
estate will be so divided among the wife
and children that no one amount can
be taxed. The same is true of the
estate of A. F. Gatlin and many others
Hence, taking the Shawnee and local
cases together, the local contribution
will not reach any considerable
amount.
The exact amount Topeka would
the state commissioners return their
certificates to the county treasurer.
There are no land marks in the in
heritance tax such as assessors and