The weekly Iberian. (New Iberia, La.) 1894-1946, 1912-11-02

Natchitoches, La, Oct. 8, 1912
To the Editor Of the Times Democrat.
hope the voters will study the
tax amendments to be voted on next
month. If so, l am sure they will be
adopted despite the opposition OF the
big special interest.
The general interests of the State
are thoroughly safeguarded. The
guarantee in favor of good roads,
levees, the public debt, Confederate
veterans and the public schools are
in all cases fully equal to and in some
larger than the provision made by the
present system.
Present exemptions from taxation
are not interfered with.
Besides these merely conservative
provisions, the amendments contain
others constituting great improve
ments over the present system.
Amongst these improvements are:
1. Production of a million dollars
or over per year from sources OF reve-
nue. hereto untaxed.
2. Cheapening of the cost OF
assessing and collecting State taxes.
3. Granting the Legislature power
to classify property for taxation,
thus permitting readjustments to re-
Heve the overtaxed and reach the
undertaxed, and also the raising
without depressing any interest OF
larger revenues for the States educa-
tional and charitable institutions.
4. Total cure Of the present injus-
tice arising from assessment by some
marshes at high and others at low
rate.
Under the present system the tax
payers of some parishes pay more
than twice their fair share Of State
taxes as compared with taxpayers OF
other parishes.
Under the proposed segregation OF
sources, no parish will be interested
in the assessment of any other parish.
Natchitoches will be large gamer
by this, her assessment rate being
higher than that of the average
parish.
Taxes may be reduced without re-
ducing the parish revenue. If taxes
remain the same, larger revenues will
be produced fer parish purposes.
S. Cure to a large extent Of the
Injustice arising from unequal assess
ments as between different citizens
of the same parish.
Under the present system assess
ments are arranged alphabetically,
and 1t is not practicable to compare
assessments of similar properties
with each other. Great inequalities
exist, due sometimes to favoritism,
but more to mere carelessness, mad
vertence or insufficient examination
of property.
The new system provides for q geo
graphical arrangement Of assess
ments, SO that property adjoining on
the ground will adjoin on the record.
It provides, also, for separate valua-
tons of lands and improvements and
for the publication in pamphlet form
OF the record showing the geographi-
cal arrangements.
Under this plan discriminating
assessments could not be made, or
II they we're the party suffering would
soon ascertain it and get it corrected.
g. Home rule, enabling parishes
and municipalities to control their
own tax matters in various respects.
They may alopt high assessments
without injuring themselves, or low
assessment without injustice to other
parishes.
Each parish may encourage new in
dUstrial Enterprises or home building
or immigration by voting exemptions,
or may continue to tax these as 1t
chooses; each may fix it's own per-
centage Of assessment, and may
adopt different percentages for per-
sonal property than for real estate
or for improvements than for land
values.
In these provisions lie large posi-
bilitiss for upbuilding the country by
offering inducements TO capital and
immigration.
Several Western Canadian prov
inces are yearly drawing vast mum.
bers Of immigrants and quantities of
capital from the United States by
reason Of these LIBERAL exemptions.
There Ia no reason why any or
every parish in Louisiana should not
take this progressive step and large
~ increase its population and pros
perity.
EXEMPTION AMENDMENTS.
Three of the proposed exemption
amendments will. II adopted, be
Statewide In their application. Two
Of them namely, tho canal exemption
and the per cent farm loan corpora.
ton exemption, apply only to COM
panies to be hereafter organized, and
therefore do not involve untaxing