Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1915-01-01
MULTNOMAH MUST
PAY YEARS INTEREST
Neglectng to Ask Reduction
Of Tax for Interest on
Bridge Bonds Caused 1t

In spite Oh Ine Well-ldlu ScueHlcS anu
plans of some Of the wisest heads of
MultnOmah county, which engineered
the act through the 1913 session of tne
legislature under which it was proposed
to saddle onto the state the annual bur
den Of interest on the $l,250,000 inter
state bridge bond issue to construct
steel bridge across the Columbia river,
to $62,500 per year for
period of 20 years, either due to the
negligence or oversight on the part Of
some officer or set of officers of that
county, failure to make request of the
state tax commission for an allowance
of reduction from MultnOmah' 5 share
of the state taxes to cover Jhe first
years interest on tae bonds until after
the state levy and apportionnlent of
taxes have been made by the tax com
mission throws the burden Of raising
the interest fund, at least for The first
year, solely upon the people oe Multno
nah county.
Yesterday afternoon the state tax
commission received an urgent request,
by special delivery letter, from the
Multnomah county court, for reduc.
ton in Multnomah county's share of
the state taxes for 1915 to make allow
ance for the first years interest on
the bonds, amounting to S62 800, evil
IDENTIFY acting under the impression that
if the request reached the commission
before midnight of the last day of De-
cember ii would be in time for the com
mission to subtract tne sum from Multi
nonah g share Of the state taxes and
it along the other counties
Of the state But the tax commission,
last evening, notified the Multnomah
couny court that the state levy and APP
portonment of state taxes had been
made on December Is and that it was
too late to make any changes or alter
ations in either at this last day as all
of the counties of the state have made
their levies based upon the state levy
and apportionment and the commits
sion S action could not be recalled,
Four years ago the legislature appro-
priated 100000 to aid in the c0nstruc-
tion of public highway from Medford,
in jackson county, to Crater Lake ma
tional park, but the act was declared
by the supreme court
as the result Of suit brought by L, IT.
McMahan on the ground that public
funds could not he appropriated for To-
cal benefit or enterprise In order to
evade the courts construction Of the
fundamental law upon this question the
law which was passed by the last ses.
sion of the legislature provided that,
for the purpose Of encouraging the con-
struction of bridges across streams to
connect two states in the event of the
county upon which the Oregon end of
the interstate bridge abutted pay he
principal upon the bond issue to coYcr
cost Of construction, the state would
assume the payment of interest upon
the bonds. The burden of taxes re.
quir2d to raise the amount to meet tine
annual interest payments upon such
bonds was to have been appotioned pro
rata among the several counties Of the
state.
When the interstate bridge bond law
was enacted by the Legislature the old
tax law, providing that the annual levy
Of state taxes be made by the state tax
commission in January Of each year
was in effect. The trainers Of the
bridge bond act evidently did not take
into consideration, or at least bear in
mind, that the same legislative assem-.
bly, which enacted the bridge bond law
also enacted a new tax code cnanging
the time Of making the state levy from
January to December II is presumed
that those whose duty II was to look
after the county's interests in such
matters were laboring under the i'm.
precision that the state levy was still
made in January until the last minute
when the discovery was made that the
levy is required to be made in Deccm.
Der and, by rushing the estimate and
request in bcfcce the close Of the month
hoped to get it in in time TO secure ad.
vantage Of the provisions OF the bridge
bond law, but they were Is days too
late.
The floating of the $l,25O0O0 bond
issue, for the construction Of Che inter.
state bridge across the Columbia river,
has been tied up In the courts TOR sey.
eral months by the suit Of Walter NJ.
White against the county court of Multi.
nomah county to restrain the issuance
Of the bonds, but the supreme court
last Tuesday handed down decision
in which the bond issue was declared
valid and in conformity with The law,
and II is possible that the Mumomah
county court was awaiting the final de.
cision Of this issue before asking the
tax commission to make allowance for
the interest funds in the state budget
Z for 1915.
Since II win not be possible for the
county TO secure any relief from It's pre-.
dicament at the hands Of the coming
: Legislature, as any attempt to appro.
pirate money for the purpose of meeting
the interest ON the bonds would be
classed as special legislation and an
appropriation OF public funds fir local
benefit ca enterprise and in direct VIC.
iation Of the constitutional inhibition.
II appears that the full burden sf meet
ing the first annual payment OF interest
ON the bridge bonds, as well us the
principal will fall solely upon the
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