El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1913-05-24
States Levy Tax on Incomes
Wisconsin State Law includes Rental
Value OF an Owners Home
as Part of Income.

Fldual states OF the union have
enacted income tax laws. Ever since
/ jamestown and Plymouth Rock efforts
have been made to adjust taxation
burdens to the ability to bear them
I First. in colonial days. it took the
form of a faculty tax" which can
scarcely be called an income tax. since
I II Simply taxed the ability to earn
rather than the amount of income
Equal Tax on Like Professions.
r OF instance, it presumed that a
/ lawyer was better able TO make money
Inan grocery clerk. and he was
taxed accordingly although at TINT
] moment he might be a brfefIess Iav-ysr
WncSe principal income was the salts
IacJlOn he could get out of waiting
Tor clients Likewise the doctor WIS
supposed to be able TO earn n bar+er
living than the farm Iaborer. and ne
was taxed accordingly, although his
OIIce rent might at that moment ex-
| coed his income from his practice.
Ihls was about as near an approach
to az. income tax as there was in the
colonies and states before the ratiff-
cation of the constitution. And mas
much as II taxed all lawyers alike. al
Z though one might make ten times as
much as another; all doctors alike.
{ although one might have a dozen pa
/ tents where another had one. il can
scarcely be considered just or equitable,
much less a tax on income.
Hisconsin's Income Tax.
One of the most recent. as well as
one OF the most interesting OF the
state income tax laws. is that enacted
by Wisconsin in 1911 Under it in
come is supposed to include: all rent
from real estate. with the estimated
rental value Of residence property &C
cupied by the owners thereof: all in
terest received; all wages, salaries,
and ices. except those received by
public Officers for public services; all
dividends and profits from stocks AMI
business; all royalties and all other
kinds OF income From this income
may be deducted all the necessary ex-
penses or outgO- In the case Of companies
and corporations this includes salaries
and wages Of officers and employees,
where the names and addresses of such
O1tlcers and employees who receive
more than 500 q year are furnished;
Otner operating expenses including
reasonable allowance for depreciation;
uncOmpensated losses, taxes and inter
est upon securities exempted from tax
alton by federal laws; and dividends
or incomes received from other sources
where an income tax has been paid
In the case of individuals the de-
auctions consist of the same things al
lowed to companies and corporations
and in addition to these they include
pensions, Inheritance upon which Gn
Inheritance tax has been paid and life
insurance up to $4,000 received from
decedents by their dependents
Incomes Up to $500 Are Exempt.
The exemptions under the WiscOn-
sin law include income I'D to $500,
which. in the case Of husband and
wife is increased to $1,000. For each
child under is years and for each
other dependent. there is an additional
exemption Of $500. In this way a
man who has a wife and five chill
dren gets an exemption OF $4,000. or
$1,000 more than the man who has no
children. As the taxable rate is I per-
cent on income up to $1,000 above the
TO-
second thousand, IL viii be seen that
the state allows the man with a wife
and five children a reduction Of SO
year on his taxes over the man
without a family.
The rate Of taxation starts at per
cent and raises . Of percent with
each successive thousand dollars of in
come until a total income of $4,000
is reached; then the rate increases by
y of / percent with each successive
thousand dollars OF income until S12.-
600 is reached, and for all incomes
Of more than that the rate is fixed
sliding Scale for Taxation.
For instance. an income of $4,000
above the general exemption IS
assessed j percent for the first thou
sand, IL percent fOr. the second thou
sand, IL percent for the third thou
sand. "a percent for the fourth
thousand, and . percent for the fifth
thousand The total assessment there
come 1t would be made UP as follows
SIS for the first $4,000; S25 for the
sixth thousand; $50 for the seventh
thousand; S35 FOR the eighth thousand;
$40 for the ninth thousand; SIS for /
the tenth thousand, $50 for the 1lth :
thousand; $50 for the 18th thousand; I
and $50 for each successive thousand !
a total Of S4l5 on a $4,000 income.
There is a further provision that in f,
the case of companies and corporations I
il shall be modified sou as 70 make I
their income tax harmonic with the {
assessed value Of their property For 7
instance, IT would be unfair to a cor I
pOrouOn which has a $4,000 income !
to pay the usual rates if il had to use I
property valued at $4,000 to produce I
that income, as the rate Of income in I
proportion to the capital invested /
would be too small to warrant high !
income tax
Virginia Imposes One Percent.
In virginia there is an income tax
law imposing a tax of 1 percent on !
all incomes above the exemption of Z
$500. For years it has been honOrcd (
more in its breach than in its OBJ j
servance, and it has brought in reye- I
nue. of only about 500 600. Dozens !
of counties have returned no income ]
tax at all This year, however. the I
state auditor has made a determined 4
effort to have the tax assessed and I
collected, and has asked the grand /
JurieS in the several counties and cities
Of the state to request everybody
likely to be subject to the tax to come
before il and declare their incomes.
An opportunity was first given for
correct returns to be furnished to the
commissioners of the revenues. The
result has been that hundreds upon
hundreds of citizens who never know
that there was an income tax law
in the state have come forward and
declared their incomes. and the pros
Dect seems to be that the Virginia
law will become a more than nesli-
Eible source of revenue and COM
pletely rejuvenated instrument of tax
alton. The Old DOminion,s law makes
no pretense at differentiation or IN
graduation of the tax
North and south Carolina Taxes.
North and South Carolina have in
come tax laws. the one in North Caro-
lima having been revised repeatedly.
For awhile it was recognized the prin-
ciples of graduation and differentia-
tiOn, but as last amended it placed the
tax at ! percent on all incomes above
$1,000. The South Carolina tax law
provides a system of graduation. but
the law is not enforced and the reve-
nue. il brings in is wholly negligible.
Tax Not Enforced in Oklahoma.
Oklahoma has an income tax law
which provides that from all salaries,
fees, professions. and property in eX-
cess of $500. upon which neither a