Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-11-06
Commissioner BroWnIoW, Be-
fore Fiscal Committee,
Urges Its Adjustment.
SUGGESTS U. S. ASSUME
ENTIRE RESPONSIBILITY
Would Have District Residents Tax
ed on Basis of Cities of Same Size
and Government Pay Balance.


tions between the United States and
the District of Columbia to adopt as
it's recommendations to Congress a
plan by which the federal government
will pay all the expenses of the Dis
trct out of its own treasury, Distrlc'
Commissioner Brownlow began yester-
day and continued today to make a
statement before the committee giving
his reasons for such action. HIS plan
also contemplates the payment OF falf
and reasonable taxes to the citizens
of the District. which will be covered
into the federal Treasury.
Mr. Brownlow said:
Il shall endeavor to confine my re-
marks to the question submitted oy
Congress to this joint select committee
which was appointed to prepare ano
submit to Congress statement OF
the proper proportion of the expenses
of the government of the Dlstrice VI
Columbia. or any branch thereoi' IN
Guiding the interest on the FUNDED
debt. which shall be borne by said Dis
trict and the United States, respec-
lively
Il do not believe that this proper
proportion can be arrived at oy tne
adoption of any arbitrary RUE W
not believe that it is possible SO TO
divide those functions of the Dlstrlct
government as to say this service shali
be paid for wholly by the national gov
eminent that service shall pc PAID
for solely by the taxpayers of the Dis
trict and the other service shall be
paid for partly by the federal gov.
eminent and partly by the District
government. =.
Il do not believe it is possible to
arrive at an equitable proportion oy
the process of treating the holdings OF
the federal government as private
property and exacting from the red
eral Treasury a contribution "nich
would equal the amount of taxes lev
led upon the federal property II II
were in private ownership.
Neither do l believe that an eQuit-
able proportion can be stated in terms
of percentages. Any fixed apportlon-
ment implies marked division be-
and interests. and if there be such
division in the nature OF events, IL
must vary from year to year AS
Stunning that there is such division
of interest, it must follow that II the
haIf-and-half be entirely just and
equitable this year it may well be
that next year it will be unjust and
negotiable.
Would Make U. S. Responsible.
Il believe that the national govern
ment should assume full and sole re-
sponsibility for the National Capital.
meeting it's every expense by direct
appropriation from the federal treas
ury; that the people here should con-
tribute toward the national expenses
an amount equal TO the taxes paid by
citizens of other American cities of
approximately the same size. The
people here will gladly bear such a
burden the nation will not willingly
Ok heT n
After study of this problem for
several years as citizen, and after
careful examination of the question for
short time from the position of a
Commissioner of the District l have
reached the conclusion that no ade-
quate presentation of the problem in
afl its phases can be made unless 1t
is based upon the fundamental facts.
OF these fundamental facts one and
one only is the corner stone, and that
is that when this republic was estab-
lished under its present constitution
il was deemed necessary and ex-
pedient to establish a federal capital
in a place wholly and exclusively I'M
der the jurisdiction of the national
government, and free from any local
control
When the government first moved
to the District of Columbia, there were
SO few people here. the community
was SO small, that the statesmen of
that time could not anticipate that its
government might have a direct bear
ing on the affairs of the federal gov
eminent. and. therefore, they left the
control and direction of its purely local
affairs to the various municipal bodies
then existent within its boundaries.
AS has been shown here, and !
shah not go into the detailed history,
the federal government from time to
time has been compelled to take a
larger and yet larger share in the con-
troll of local political affairs. This
tendency eliminated in 1878. when by
virtue OF the so-called organic act
the federal government actually took
over the entire and complete control
of the District 1t left. it is true
the shell of d municipal corporation
hut il was and is merely shell. Only
congress legislate for the Dis
trict: only Congress can impose taxes
IN the District; only Congress can APP
propriate money for the expenditures
Of the District. and without the af-
firnative action of Congress the gov
eminent of the District of Columbia in
every respect is powerless and i'm
potent"
No Such Thing as Half and Half.
Quoting the "half-and- half" pro.
vision of the organic act and the an
Hual appropriation acts passed subse
quetly. Mr Brownlow said:
NOTWITHSTANDING the mandatory char
acter of this legislative language
shall, | believe, be able to show you
that the expenditures of the District
Of Columbia have not been made on tht
half-and half basis and that, as a mat
ter Of fact, there is no such thing az The
half-and half system
IT is purely legislative fiction
when the collector of taxes of the
District Of Columbia al the end OF hi,
days work deposits with the treas
ufer of the United States his collection.
Tor the day, he is given a receipt b,
the treasurer, which reads as follows
10 read from an example have befor.
me: L certify that Ben l.. Prince. col
4ector of taxes, ID. G., has this day de
posted to the credit of the. United
states S21,6s1.17 on account of col
lections, d. C.. for which I have signe,
duplicate receipt Every cent col
lected from the taxpayers of the Dis
irfct OF Columbia goes into the Treas
ury to the credit of the United States
mere Is no account of the District O.
columbia in the Treasury Department
: ana Nongress is at liberty to do will
me moneys collected from the taxpay
eTs OF the District anything that 4
may do with the money collected a
the customhouses. or the office of tn
internal revenue collectors anywher
in the republic"
Mr.. Brownlow then described in de
tail the method OF handling District n
Columbia tax moneys in the Treas
ury. and continued:
No d. c. Account in Treasury.
There is not on the books of ~