The Rice belt journal. (Welsh, Calcasieu Parish, La.) 1900-19??, 1912-11-01

it.
The present system gets the cost OF
roads and pensions from all property
The reform amendment gets the road
money and pension money from tie
corporations and special interests, cuts
the taxpayers bills by ia mill, gives
tie parish another mill never collected
by the state and leaves the roads and
the veterans better OF than they were
before. You may check this statement
by reading the amendment.
All state license taxes, except On
saloons and other businesses strictly
under the police power, are abolished
The parishes are permitted to levy
licences as at present except Oh
persons making a living without using
real estate or stock in trade. This
means no taxes On doctors, skilled
mechanics, etc. 1t results i'll leaving
money with people who earn it by their
personal efforts alone. See Article
of Amendment No. /.
! The school taxes and other special
taxes remain as they are today. They
will continue to be collected and will be
levied on all property, whether segre'
gated to the state or the parishes. See
Sections II and Il of Amendment No. /.
The schools are guaranteed that
their estimated revenue from the
state for this year, $l,O30OC0, shall be
their least revenue hereafter. The
legislature is ordered to give the state
school fund a fifth Of all its revenue,
Whidh il is estimated will amount to
S1,500,0G0; and this estimate appears
low. The parishes are ordered to give
three tenthS Of their revenue to the
schools. The schools are this far bet.
ter off than they were before. See
Section 10 and Paragraph A. Of Section
8.
With saving Of IA mill for his own
pocket book, more money for roads
and more money for schools, the things
that most appeal to the people are
provided in the amendment. These
are the tightening of the burden and
the general benefit to the whole people.
The next question is the after of
how the governments, city, parish and
state, fare under No. l. The towns
that pay parish taxes and lose by
segregation get the money refunded
with five per cent bonus. The towns
that do not pay parish taxes get their
refunds, with S per cent, from the
state. No towns really lose. The
parishes that are short after making
these refunds get the money from the
state. Therefore no parish really
loses. Six parishes and four towns
will lie thus reimbursed by the state
for their apparent loss. The others
make gains ranging from small
amounts to many thousands. See
Article and the figures in the Times.
Democrat Sunday, October 20, Copies
of the figures may be obtained from
the Timcs.Democrat and the Progress.
sive Union in New Orleans, and the
Governors Office in Baton Rouge.
The state government gets a com.
parativeIy small amount of assessed
property for its income. 1t is the
property that is now lodging and if
No. | be defeated will continue to
dodge its fair taxes. It is for the most
part the property of the interests"
the railroads, banks, sugar and oil re-
fineries, telephone and telegraph lines,
etc. See Article 2. The revenue it
will collect from these on their present
assessment is about the same as the
state collects today Oh all property.
whether the peoples or the Inter.
ests'." The new taxes will add in
round figures the extra million that is
needed to care for the schools. the
state institutions and the various de.
partments of the state government.
There is no question that the state
needs the money badly.
The benefit to the individual taxpay.
ers and to the government is clear. No
tax dodger. however bitter against
this reform, has attacked these benefits
with statement OF fact. \ There is no
room for argument in them. But there
are other phases to be considered. Does
the reform .equalizs taxes inside the
parish. 1t does SO as thoroughly as
lawmakers can ever do it.
Section 10 Of Article Six changes the
present law in good way. 1t gives the