Little Falls herald., 1912-10-25
TAXATION IN MINNESOTA
THE INHERITANCE TAX-THIRTY.
NINTH ARTICLE BY TAX 1,
= COMMISSION /

mortgage registry tax, and the three
mill tax on money and credits, which
have been already covered in these
articles, the, state imposes certain 9th,
Eer. taxes deserving of mention, such @
the Inheritance tax, the tonnage tax On
vessels plying on international waters,
the bushel tax on grain, and the liquor
license tax :1<;s=. 1szs:ss -, -
:,s The most important Of these is tho
Inheritance tax. Although not in
general use in this country until com.
|paratively recent times the inheritance
tar IS not: new invention. It wxe
employed by the Romans as q part of
their fiscal system before the dawn of
the Christian era and. there is evidenee
that the Egyptians made use Of it evlia
earlier than the Romans. In many
European countries it has been in Du1.
cessful operation for centuries.
From an economic standpoint no tax
has more to commend it and none 50
easier to defend. As has been well said:
! This method Of increasing the public
revenue is wise, simple and effective
wise because it does not touch
private property during the life Of tho:
owner and thus places no burden upon
business activity; simple because the
tax is easily ascertained and collected;
while estates are being administered in
the probate court; effective because by
the application Of progressive rates, t
adds no burden to the poor but permits
those who have much to contribute to
the government somewhat in proportion
to their ability to pay. It invades NO
natural rights. It violates no maxim Of
the law. It overleaps no constitutional
barriers. It is neither Revolutionary
nor socialistic, but is, on the contrary,
measure Of practical wisdom and
social justice, and has been truly
styled an institution Of democracy
In this state six different legislatures
have stamped the Inheritance tax with
their approval. The first Inheritance.
tax law, enacted in 1885, was declared
unconstitutional by the supreme court
| as were similar laws passed in 1897,
1901 and 1902. The fifth attempt of the
legislature to tax inheritances,
Chapter 288, Laws Of 1905, was success
full being sustained by the supreme
| court in test case.
The present law imposes tax upon
| inheritances, devises, bequests, 1egaci-
es, and gifts Of every kind Tt is in
! fact a tax on the right to receive
! property, or any interest herein, or in
come 1therefrom in trust or otherwise.
Liberal exemptions from the tax
| are allowed to husband or wife or
children Of the decedent the amount
under the present law being $4,000.
Parents receive an exemption of $3,-
600, and brothers and sisters, $1,000.
Certain smaller exemptions are allowed
more distant relatives.
The rate is imposed on the amount
in excess Of the exemption and is
graduated one, increasing as the
amount or value of the bequest in
| creases. For instance. in the case of q
wife or child, if the value of the prop
erty exceeds ten thousand but does not
exceed fifteen thousand dollars, tax
of one per cent would be imposed on
the amount in excess Of the exemption
Upon all in excess Of fifteen thousand
and under thirty thousand
| the rate is one and one-half per cent,
from thirty to fifty thousand dollars
two per cent; on sums over fifty thous-
and dollars two and one-half per cent,
Eand all sums over one hundred thous-
and dollars the rate is three per cent.
In the case Of husband, or parents
Of the decedent, the rate starts at one
and one half per cent. and increases to
four and one-half per cent; for
brothers and sisters and certain rela-
tives the rate begins at three per cent
and increases to nine per cent, for GER
tain other relatives 1t begins at four
fper cent and increases to twelve per
cent, and for strangers it ranges from
five to fifteen per cent.
In the earlier years of the tax on in.
heritances the entire revenue received
| from this source was retained by the
state Under an amendment adopted
in 1911 the county in which the de-
cedent resided now receives ten per
cent Of the tax.
The revenue received from this
source for the fiscal year ending July
81, 1912 amounted to $S78,513. The
total receipts since the enactment OF
the law to date exceeds $2,280'OO0.