The Washington herald., 1914-04-09

property of the United States.
1T is believed Congress could authorize
the payment of the Federal governments
part of>this tax by the enactment OF
law providing that the contribution OF
the United States to the District Of Co.
lumbia each year should be a sum equal
to the amount of taxes which would be
collected from that property if II were
subject to taxation at the rate applied TO
taxable property.
such an arrangement substituted for
the half-and-half, believe, would elimi
nate forever all opportunity for serious
controversy over who pays the bill
Because this is the seat of govern
ment, 900 people live here, and for IIU
other reason 1t is necessary for these
S5o. 900 people to have a municipal gov
ernment, and II does not seem at all
illegal or unfair that the government
should pay toward the expense Of the
municipality what a private industry
would pay to any other municipality un-
der similar circumstances-an amount
proportionate to its holdings of property
in the community.
81. 1t is anticipated that the first
and foremost objection that will be Of
fered to the fifth proposal will be that
the property OF the sovereign govern
ment cannot be taxed. This. il is be-
Iieved, can be met by the legislation out
lind in the statement on the fifth pro-
Losal above.
80 1t is anticipated that another
objection will be that any city in the
United States would be glad to agree to
exempt all property of the United States
from taxation forever il il could get the
seat of government, and that in no city
in the United States does the Federal
government pay taxes upon its property.
Possible Objections Answered.
The answer to these objections is that
in no city in the United States except
Washington does the government own
enough property for that ownership and
exemption to be an important factor in
raising local revenue, and in no city to
which II would be at all logical to move
the Capitol would IT be a factor for a
great many years.
-. It Is anticipated that another OBJ
lection will be that the citizens Of the
District of Columbia ought to be grateful
Ito the Federal government and quite will
ing to exempt the governments property
from taxation because they owe their
very existence and the fact that there is
any city here at all TO the Federal gov
ernment
The citizens of the District of Coldm-
bia no more owe their existence TO the
United States government than the peo-
pie of Pittsburgh owe their existence to
the Steel Trust In one wey or another,
directly or indirectly, the people OF the
District of Columbia gain their livelihood
from the United States government. but
they pay for it in full measure by serv-
ices rendered
Il. II is anticipated that another OBJ
lection will be that the United States
cannot be expected TO permit the assess
ors of the District of Columbia to place
a valuation upon its property when that
valuation is to be the basis Of its con-
tribution to the local government: that
such an arrangement would give the Dis
trict Commissioners the opportunity to
make high valuations and thereby collect
a large sum from the Federal govern
ment and a small sum. relatively, from
the owners Of private property.
IF there Is a weakness in the fifth
proposal. IT is in this respect. 1t may
not be unreasonable to suggest that the
protection OF the United States in this
regard be left to the honesty and sense
OF fairness of the men who will be Com
missioners. II it is deemed unwise to
place that much confidence in them, the
objection might be met by having the
appraisal of the Federal governments
property made by some agency of the
Federal government, or by n board COM
posed Of representatives OF both the Dis
trict and the Federal governments
% 1t Is anticipated that another objec-
ton will be that upon many of the gov
ernment buildings In the District 1t will
be difficult for any agency to arrive at
valuation. Some Of them are very
old and on some OF them the value
would oe dificult TO estimate because of
the character OF their use.
This objection might be met in two
ways:
"a. BY providing by law that the ap-
praissl should be the cost of construc-
ton-which lie available from the oficial