The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1916-01-20
WHAT TAXPAYERS PAID IN.
Nearly Seven and One-Kalf Million
for County and School Purposes.


Columbia, Jan. 15.-Nearly seven
and one-half million dollars were
paid by the the taxpayers in South
Carolina last year for State, county
and school purposes. Were it posi-
Bile to include municipal taxes this
figure would be increased by several
more million If, as it is believed,
the municipal taxes would reach ST.
100000, it would mean, total of
s1O,OO0,000 paid in last year by the
people for taxes, the expenses of run
ming the government, supporting the
schools, providing funds for the coun-
ties and municipalities.
These figures were obtained today
in the course of search for informa-
ton as to just how much taxes are
paid in every year by the people Of
the State for all purposes. There
has been much talk this year about
economy, and both Governor Man
ming and the general assembly, have
put on the lid and will hold down
the appropriation bill Last year the
appropriation bill for State purposes
carried nearly $2,500,O00, just about
one-ffth of the entire taxes paid in
the State.
A glance at some totals will be in
teresting:
The total taxes assessed in the for
ty-four counties for county purposes
last year amounted to $2,173,411.69;
the assessment for State purposes to
raise the amounts in the appropria
ton bill was $2,176,349.7O; the spec
ial levies for school purposes (this
is the total of all special levies in
school districts) realized $780,
705.27; the three-mill constitutional
school tax raised $936,341.94; the
poll tax, which goes to the schools,
amounted to s243,575; the tax on
dogs, which also goes to the schools
amounted to $55,134; and the road
tax, which goes into the counties,
amounted to S152,55S; then the tax
from indirect sources reached 1884,
600; which makes a total from all
sources of $685. ,o75.61 paid in last
year by the people of South Carolina
for State, county and school purposes.
And this tax all comes from prop
trty assessed in this State for taxa
ton amounting to- $310,907,101, dis
tributed as follows; real estate,
$162,SO5,144; personal property,
$102,2S5,S61; railroads, $45,S16,-
096. 49,.
1t would be interesting to figure.
just how much taxes would amount
to in total if the property were all re-
turned at one hundred cents on the
dollar, and the levies remain as they
are now. There is a general idea
that property is returned for taxation
at sixty per cent. of it's actual value,
but those whose business it is to as
sess and collect taxes know that this
is hardly anything more than an
idea. There is very little property
returned at sixty per cent, and it is
believed it would come nearer aver
aging twenty-five per cent. and much
lower than that.
This is one of the many problems
which Governor Manning has been
working on, and it is necessarily a
hard one which encounters much op-
position when the existing conditions
are interfered with or changed. But
everybody realizes that the burden of
taxation as now assessed is not even
ly distributed, and there must be a
revision somewhere.
I With a population of approximate
ly 500, 900 people South Carolinians
are paying nearly SIS per capita as
tax to conduct the State, counties
and schools, and S6.66 2-3 per Ncapi-
ia if the estimate for municipal taxes
are correct.