Bisbee daily review., 1913-01-12
CORPORATION TAXES AS THEY ARE TAKEN
 IN WESTERN STATES
Railroads Are Made to Con- tribute Literally in West ern Central Area. State As
 sumes Controlling Tax Power Only in Few States
MINNESOTA METHOD
 OF TAXING MINES


 wASHINGToN.-In Part ". of the report of the bureau of corporation on state taxation of corporations. Commissioner Luther Conant, IT,, deals with the western central states, namely. Minnesota. North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebrask" Iowa. Kan sas and Missouri. A noteworthy fea- ture Of the tax systems of these stabes is that they depend in the main upon the general property tax and rely 10 comparatively small extent upon special taxes from corporations as compared with the New England. Middle Atlantic and Eastern Central States. Minnesota is a notable ex- ception. securing two-thirds Of it's revenue from special corporation tax es. or corporation taxes in these western stakes. those from railroad companies are the most important, although insurance companies con tribute largely to such taxes.
 Approximately 66 per cent of the Minnesota State taxes, whicn amount to more than sSO00,00O annually, is paid by corporations assessed by the state. The gross earnings tax is more extensively used in this than in any other state thus far treated in these reports. It applies to railroad, car. telephone and express companies, in terstate earnings, except express com pany earnings. are used as a measure of value. Express companies are tax ed on purely state earnings less trans portation charges paid to railroads but at a comparatively bigh rate. Min ing property is classified and assess ments are levied on the value of ore in the ground. Under this method assessments have increased from s7O.- 100000 in 1906 to about S222 ,00O, 600 iii l9Ie The Minnesota constitution requires any repeal or amendment of the laws taxing railroads on the gross earnings basis to be submitted to a vote of the people. The largest single item of revenue from taxation in 1910 was from railroads, about s4 4.500,000 or 55 per cent
 North Dakota's total state revenues from taxation in 1910 were about S1 60o,000. Of this amount, 24 per cent was from corporations assessed by the state. 4 central state board as. sesses steam and street railroad, ex- press. car. telegraph and telephone companies. In 1910 the state collect ed s2l0.G00 from railroads. South La. kota's revenue from state taxation is about s1,50O.0O0. and about IS per cent of this is from corporations as sessed by the state. Railroads con. tributed s122,000 in 1910.
 Nebraska's revenues from taxation amounts to about S2.600.00O. and about 25 per cent is rom certain classes of corporations. namely, rail road, car, express, telegraph, teIe- phone. insurance, financial and mis- cellaneous companies The distin- gushing feature of the Nebraska tax system is the terminal tax act. the purpose of which Is to allow incor- porated cities and villages more ad- eoiate tax receipts on railroad pro perty. such as terminals, than can be obtained under the unit rnle. This is the only state of the present group which has capital stock tax. 1t is in the nature of an occupation fee, applicable 10 all corporations for pro fit except financial companies. lt yields about s6i COG annually. Ne braska retains the method of asses sing pocally public utility companies The only state taxed corporations are railroad and car companies About S300.000 comes from railroads and 133.000 from insurance companies.
 Kansas collects about S3,O00.0 900 through taxes. and about q per cent of this is from corporations assessed by the state. This state seems to have made 8 determined effort to equalize taxation by assessing pro perty ct full valne. The gross re- ceipts method applies to express com panies: the general property tax to all other corporations except foreign insurance companies. which are tax ed on premiums. From general pro- perty the state got S2.0ss0.00O in 1910; from railroads s47l.0O0, and insurance companies $z74,000
 State. as distinguished from local. revenue from taxation is a little more than S5.000,0OG annually in Missouri corporations assessed by the state contribute 20 per cent Of this. The only taxes levied solely for state pur- pOses are on gross receipts Of ex- press companies and property cs freight car companies. Shares of stock of coreign corporations have recently been declared exempt from taxation: shares of stock of domestic corporations are in The main exempt. Bonds of both foreign and domestic corporations are taxable. Of the ST. 05l,9O0 collected from corporations in 1910. railroads paid s272 900 and :n- surance companies $37G000.