Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1913-01-01
WHAT ARE We, GOING TO eEr7

WHAT ARE WE, GOING TO GET
The Waterloo Courier thinks that if
the legislature were asked to provide
for a 1-mill road levy by indirection
as suggested by the Times Republican
that it would have all the effects of an
anesthetic in putting all road legisla-
ton to sleep but still the Courier likes
the idea of it will work. The Times
Republican has not advanced the sug-
gestion upon the spur of moment
for it's editors have been giving some
careful study to road legislation in
other states for several years past.
The suggestion Of a 1-n1ill state road
levy was sprung at Des Moines because
it is the method recently adopted in
Minnesota. The experience of many
other states. however, has shown that
the principle of local levies induced by
by state engineers has actually built
roads faster than the method of direct
state levies. ''r.' '''
There is one serious objection to the
direct state levy and that is that
vast sum of nearly 100000 per an
mum or possibly $20,000,000 if antici-
pated for ten years by bond issue as
Authorized in Minnesota, will be under
the sole direction of q state commits
sion more or less subject to Des Moines
influence. This commission will desig
nate the roads to be paved and very
naturally will select trunk lines begin
ming with several. transcontinental
routes OF which the River to River road
will come first. Under this system the
property Of northeastern Iowa and OF
northwestern, southeastern and south
western Iowa will be paying taxes for
many years before paved roads will
come very near to the counties paying
the taxes.
Under the slight change. in the plan
proposed by the Times Republican this
same 1-nlill levy would be made by the
counties for paved roads in the county
paying the tax. By giving the state
highway commission all of the auto
mobile tax, which is now half Il million
Of dollars per annum and viii amount
to a million per annum in five years
time. this tax could be bonded for sew
enteen millions or more on twenty
Year bond issue and the money used 10
pay one third of the cost of all rural
pavements in counties which would
themselves levy q special 1-mill tax
for another third of the cost and which
would assess the benefited property
for the other third as already proposed.
highway commission.
1t is well known that the three states
that are doing the fastest work in the
matter of paving or macadamiZins
rural highways are Texas, Missouri and
Michigan. all of which operate under
laws which permit counties 10 issue
cial assessment road districts wnlcn
can issue road Improvement bonds as
our own special drainage districts now
do 1t is under the local option of pay
for what YOU get and get it that forty
miles of rural highways were paved
with concrete in Wayne county, Michi-
gan. from county bonds. Dennison,
Tex. and vicinity year ago spent
$3.50 900 for sixty-five miles of macad-
amized roads from a local bond issue
and under this law there were more
Texas local bonds sold in the year 1911
than in the state Of New York where
the state bond plan is used Only this
past summer a special district twelve
miles square with Sedalia, Mo, as its
center was created, 100000 Of bonds
issued and fifty-two miles of rock
roads radiating in every direction out
of Sedalia built.
When any kind of a bond issue plan
for a gigantic road system comes be-
fore the legislature the average mem
Der will want to know How much of
this road do we get IN our county ne
will not be content to leave that to
state highway commission. Let the
highway commission have the automo-
bile tax TO offer as premium to the
counties. Let the state lend its credit
TO the counties because the state can
borrow at lower rates of interest than
the counties can. Let the state com
mission do all the engineering and then
let the counties levy the 1-mill tax in
the counties where the roads are to be
built and assess the property benefited
nv the roads In this way will we
get the quick results Of the local bond
plans and not lose the advantages of
the states credit and of the pulling
effect of state aid to induce the locali-
ties to act This is NOT a complicated
amendment at all. It is merely state
wide policy rather than concentration
of state money upon favored localities.
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