The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-03-02
SOME PROVISIONS
 0F REVENUE BILL Bowie and Harding Issue
 Statement AIDED IN THE WORK New Bill Contains What Are Pro- nounced Highly Valuable and Important Changes in the
 Existing Law

&long with the announcement that new revenue bill has been completed Tor submission to the legislature. Sydney J.. Bowie and w. P. G. Harding, who assist ed in preparing it, issued the following statement yesterday
 Having upon the invitation of MT Brindey, chairman of the ways and means committee. and of MT. De Graffen-
 reid, special counsel to the governor, been engaged for the past week in assist 1 ing in the preparation of the new revenue l bill to be introduced in the legislature Tn | lieu of the one which has caused so much complaint, we feel it advisable to make | a statement to the public in regard to some of the more important features of the new bill. Space will forbid state ment of all the minor changes. Tn the first place the new bill contains number of highly valuable and impor- tant changes in existing laws. The most material are as follows:
 'Money on deposit in banks, whether subject to check or not, is exempt from taxation. The tax upon this species of iyt culiar hardship and would result in se- | riously crippling every banking institution in the state, as well as impairing the pub lie credit It Is not generally enforced, but where it has been enforced at all, as it is in some cases it is not only unjust in itself but has operated as a dis crimination against those who paid the | tax and in favor of those who omitted this property from their returns.
 Heretofore the law has taxed solvent credits. This tax, too, has been gen. erally evaded but it has been paid by some A special provision is now added by
 which the taxpayer can set off against
 his solvent credits the amount of his lia-
 blities. If his liabilities exceed his cred it's, there will be no tax on this item but I if his liabilities are less than his credits
 he will be taxed only upon the differ
 ence. This is a great improvement upon
 the existing law on that point. Cotton Factories
 l New cotton factories until 1907 were exempt from taxes. This law lapsed four years ago. The new bill provides for an | exemption from state, county and munich | pal taxation for a period of five years for all cotton factories hereafter erected with | in the state. This provision ought to stim- uate a very important manufacturing en- l terprse.
 Water powers and lime nitrogen plants are exempt from taxation for a term of
 years under existing law. This exemption was repealed by the first proposed revenue | bill. but the exemption has been restored under the new bill
 "Dealers and peddlers in farm produce, selling from their own wagons direct D customers, are exempt from state, coun-
 ty and municipal license. This provision ought to stimulate, and we believe will
 stimulate, truck gardening and farming,
 and is directly in line with the work of
 Chamber of Commerce.
 Material changes have been made in the proposed revenue bill The mortgage
 record tax is left at Ia ceuts on the dollar;
 the tax of s1 a thousand on money lend CTS, whether individuals or corporations,
 has been stricken out, and specific license of s1O0, heretofore charged to per
 sons engaged in that business, has been
 restored.
 Foreign Corporations
 "The franchise tax on foreign corpor-
 ations, from sections 2391 to 2400, inclu- | sive, of the code of 1907, Is expressly re-
 pealed, and in lieu of this tax uniform
 tax on foreign and domestic corporations
 is imposed of $10 for corporations whose
 capital stock does not exceed $1000o; of sl per thousand upon corporations whose
 capital stock exceeds $10,000 and does not
 exceed s50, ,o0O; of 50 cents additional per
 thousand for all over $5o,000 and not ex- ceeding $1,o00,OO0; and 25 cents per thou sand on all over s1,0O0,0OO; the tax on for eign corporations by the act of 1907, as portion of it's capital actually in use in Alabama. which is required by our state constitution In this form 1t is believed that the tax on both foreign and domes- tic corporations Is constitutional. The schedule, it will be observed, is very ma
 terally lower than that required of for eign corporations by the act of 1907, and
 we'll as by the provisions of the original
 bill. It only slightly increases the license | tax on dOmeSuc cOTpOTdtioliS uilueI eN- isting law. Public service corporations
 who pay an intangible asset or franchise
 tax and banks arc exempted from this
 tax.
 "The insurance features. to which so much objection was originally
 made. have been materially changed. The provisions requiring insurance agencies to file reports of their pol
 icies and policyholders with the pro- bate judge have been eliminated. The
 provision that the tax on personal property should be not less. but might
 be more, than the face of the insur- ance policies has also been eliminated. The bill provides that the taxpayer | can be required to state. under oath,
 the amount of his insurance on per
 sonal property. except as to household and kitchen furniture and effects and i such insurance may be considered in | determining the value of the property. | A similar provision is in the existing | law. The only change is in the ma
 chinery.
 | Some changes have been made in | the license schedule of the proposed
 bill. Automobiles are taxed sl per