Evening star., 1915-11-05

ments and the committee that conduct
| ed the investigation had ascertained
| through its hearings that assessments
were very low, running from 20 per
| cent to so per cent. Feeling that it
would be impossible in short space
| of time to get assessments up to full
| value, as then required by law, but re-
| solved to bring about an improvement
| in the assessments, or rather to bring
about an increase in the assessments
| this proviso was incorporated IN the
| bill, that thereafter assessments should
| be not less than two-thirds of actual
value.
Situation Declared Simple.
THE effect of this proviso of 1902 you
will, therefore, see was to make the tax
| rate paid in the District of Columbia IL
| per 500, or / per cent and in making
up the figures referred to a moment
ago, carrying the revenues and sur
| pluses to 1920. the 1 per cent tax rate
| has been assumed for the future.
I 'It seems to me, in view of this slt-
uation, that this committee is con-
fronted by what is really quite a SIM
| Pile situation and not so complicated
| and difficult as one would presume
| from the vast amount of evidence, dls-
| cussion and argument that mas peen
| presented in this matter 1t seems 10
! me that these certain surpluseS auto-
matically dispose of the half-and-hai1
| for this reason: That to defend the
half-and half in the face of them
means to do one of two things-ap-
propriate twice as much money every
year as the District raises and thereby
| absorb the surplus. or reduce the TAX
rate in the District of Columbia.
| Il do not anticipate that any member
of this committee would seriously pro-
pose to this Congress reduction of
the tax rate in the District of Column
! bia. When you realize that l per
| centum includes a great many state
and county taxes which you pay in
your home cities, it must be apparent
to each of you that the present tax
| rate, at least, is not oppressive. On
| the other hand, / think it must be ap
parent, also, to every member of this
committee that when you sit down
and calmly consider the appropriatinS
habits of the Congress of the United
! States you will know that Congress is
| not going to make appropriations for
| twice the amount of these increasing
revenues of the District of Columbia.
D. C. Financial Condition Excellent.
Congress Is not going to do it. not
only because in making provisions for
an institution of the character of the
District of Columbia, it is not likely to
make sudden and abnormal increases
in appropriations in any one year, but
also because the financial condition of
| the District of Columbia is most excel
| lent. Our Indebtedness is less than
! s6,OOO,0OO; in fact, We have no indebt-
| edness except the outstanding 3.65
! bonds which represent the less than
| six million dollars that ! have just in
dlcated. Any large extraordinary prof.
! ects such as the Great Falls power
| plant or the branching out of the Dis
| trict government into municipal/owner-
ship. or operation of any public utility,
could and should be financed by a bond
issue. Our credit, both for sentimental
and financial reasons, could hardly be
better. We not only have very small
Indebtedness when compared to our
taxable values, btft- being sort of step
son of Uncle Sam, We are able to float
bonds at much better rate of interest
than any other municipality.
"A defender of the half-and-half sys-
tenn might with some logic advocate
the payment of this balance of less than
S6,000,O00 of 3.65 bonds with the surplus
of District revenues. but we are paying
those bonds off at rate of about $780,
600 a year now, and even if we should
devote all our surplus to paying off
these bonds, in two or three years they
would all be paid and we would again
be in the same situation as we are now.
Cites Basis for Friction.
Il now want to make statement to
the committee which will not be re-
ceived with enthusiasm in some quar-
ters of the District of Columbia, but
which / am compelled to make because
/ am absolutely convinced of it's truth.
1 believe that 80 per cent of the fric-
tion between members of Congress and
citizens of the District of Columbia,
and 80 per cent of the friction between
individuals or groups of individuals in
Congress or the District of Columbia, is
due to the very existence of the half
| and-half plan, because it causes every
thing in the District to be discussed on
the basis of the half-and-half and not
on the basis of the merits of the sub
ject under discussion.
Every question pertaining to the
District of Columbia to text books for
the schools or to street paving, or to
the cost of sidewalks, or the collection
of garbage, or to the paying of street
car tickets for policemen and tiremen,
or to the salary of the Commissioners,
or to the pay of an additional messen-
ger in the courthouse. is discussed not
at all upon the merits of whether the
thing should be had or whether the
thing is needed, but upon the basis of
why should the United States pay half
of this and why should the District
! of Columbia pay half of this. that and
the other thing%
For instance, here is a case in point:
In the last session of Congress a bill
was introduced providing that police
men and iremen of the District of Co
| lumbia should ride free on street cars
when in uniform. 1t was referred to
| the Commissioners for report. The Com
missioners sent up an adverse report
on the bill, saying that In the frst
place, employees of the District should
not be permitted to accept gratultes
| from corporations which were regu-
lated by the District, and that the cor
| poration should not be asked to fur
nish that free service; that the Com
| missioners had asked in their est-
| mates for an appropriation to purchase
! car tickets to be used by policemen and
| fremen while travelling on duty.
Half-and-Half Plan Ridiculed.
"The Commissioners also were op-
posed to the bill because il. would favor
one certain class of employees of the
| District of Columbia as against all
other employees. The bill was before
committee of Congress for hearing,
| and in that hearing one member of the
committee said: I am inclined to agree
with the Commissioners on this In OBJ
| jecting to the free passage OF ponce
men and firemen on street cars. think
the Commissioners should issue tickets
to them whenever riding in the per-
| formance of their duties Two mem
| bers of the committee leveled their nm
gers at the new member and said, But
YOU don't realize that the United States
| has got to pay for half of every one
| of those tick ets.' When you come down
to splitting street car tickets you have
| reduced your consideration of the af-
| fairs of the District to terms OF abb