The Detroit times., 1911-06-22
SAYS MICHIGAN'S TAX LAWS
BELONG TO LAST CENTURY
CONTINUED from page one,

of the principal OF the debt, the evil
dences of debt shall thereafter be
exempt from taxation. Should this
bill be enacted we anticipate rev.
enue from two to three million dol
lars a year and great indirect advan-
tages to the. people of the state.
Our law for the taxation OF debts
locally Is more liberal than that OF
Michigan. Under our law personal
property Is taxable to each person az
ter deducting all the just debts owing
by him. The power of debt deduction
applies to all personal property, tan.
gible and intangible, whereas, be-
lieve that the Michigan law permits
only the deduction of debts from cred
its, and bond Is not deemed to be
a credit. Upon reflection IL must be
obvious to anyone that no laws can
be enacted and enforced which pro
vide for the taking by taxation OF one
OF property. And yet, that is what
happens when four per cent bonds are
subject to taxation at the rate Of two
per cent. A man buys bonds in the
markets of the world at price bas-
ed on the net income of the bonds
without taking taxation into account
II he happens to own these bonds and
resides In a Michigan town where the
rate Of taxation Is two per cent. out
of every forty dollars he gets on the
bond he must pay twenty dollars to
the town. No one will long submit TO
such extortion; some men charge
their investments; some move. and
some trife with the truth.
About sixty years ago a theory
seems to have spread throughout the
United States that equality of taxa
ton demanded the equal taxation OF
all kinds of property. | have never
discovered who started this theory or
why IL started. II never had any four
dalton In sense or logic but II swept
the west. The constitution OF Ohio oil
1851, was one Of the first to provide
very specifically for the taxation OF
all property at its cash value. For the
last 20 years Ohio has been. trying
to get that constitution changed, and
at last has called a constitutional
convention, which will meet in few
months. Minnesota copied Ohio's
constitution but changed 1t about six
years ago. Kentucky and Missouri
both copied similar provisions and
have been trying to enact amendments
TO their constitutions.
Michigan has so much OF the Ohio
constitution as to provide that there
must be uniform rule of taxation
OF all property. and II Is recognized
that some kinds of property should
not be taxed at all, while other kinds
OF property when taxed should be tax.
ed In way appropriate TO each par.
ticular kind OF property.
Evidences OF debt are easily con.
cealed and are elusive. II is impos.
sible to impose heavy rate OF taxa.
ton, but II Is possible to tax evi.
dences OF debt as you propose now
to tax mortgage debts. An effective
small tax produces much more rev.
enue than heavy tax that is only
occasionally collected from the ignor.
and and defenseless. II is notorious
that intangible personal property is
subjected to very little taxation com
pared with It's aggregate value.
think you have started on the right
path by exempting mortgage debts
from taxation by the payment OF one.
half of one per cent of the principal
Of the debt, and You will do wisely
to apply this same principle to all
other secured debts.
II regard II as barbarous thing to
tax merchandise and mercantile cred
IT'S under the general property tax
but do not at present see any way
20 deal satisfactorily with the problem
until your constitution is amended