Evening star., 1916-01-06

Ial electors.
U. s. Should Maintain Capital.
II need say but little more on this
branch OF the subject. I-have shown
that practically the District Of Colum.
bia is a mere name, without authority
or responsibility. This is the capital
or the nation, for which the nation
| alone Is responsible. 1t must be ap-
authority or responsibility. / think
the government should once for all
take over its own capital and provide
for and maintain it. And the name OF
It should be changed. To call the CAPT.
tai OF the country district is incon-
gruous and anything but pleasing. 1t
should be made the city of Washing
ton. Commissioners of the city OF
washington should be appointed as q
branch of the government. with au-
and control its affairs. The Commits
sioners should be government officers
and responsible as such. 1 am con-
vinced that they should be given much
broader and more comprehensive power
and authority in dealing with local af-
fairs than the District Commissioners
now have. Provisions should be made
by Congress for complete readjust-
ment of conditions in the District. The
laws regulating assessments and col
lection of taxes are badly in need of
revision. So, l have no doubt, are other
laws affecting District affairs.
The District of Columbia as mu-
nicipal corporation. as 1 have already
pointed out, is worse than useless, and
should be speedily abolished.
Opposes Half-and-Half System.
'It may well be inferred from what
have said that in my judgment there
should be no half-and-half system nor
any other proportionate liability for
the expenses of the District of Colum-
bia as between the District and the
government. 1t is the capital of the
nation over which the government has
full and exclusive jurisdiction and con-
troll. Its obligations and RESPONSE
bilities should be equally broad and
exclusive. 1t cannot either lawfully or
justly transfer any part Of its duty or
responsibility to the so-called munich
pality. the District Of Columbia, or
anybody else. It should have no wish
what 1t has attempted to do by the
act of 1873. by which the half -and-half
system was established. Congress
fixes by law the tax rate and the basis
is raised by taxation. dollar for dollar.
So Congress not only shifts half its
responsibility to the taxpayers of the
District, but limits its own RESPONSE
Dy tne amount IuuS EdiSSu-
The so-called organic act, after re-
quiring the Commissioners to estimate
the amount necessary to defray Ihe
expenses of the District. provides:
ITO the extent to which Congress shall
approve of said estimates Congress shall
appropriate the amount of SO per cent
thereof, and the remaining so per cent OF
such approved estimates shall be levied
and assessed upon the taxable property
and privileges in said District other than
the property of the United States and OF
the District of Columbia
q. S. Limited in Appropriations.
This clause of the act expressly limits
the amount to be appropriated by the
government to so per cent Of the amount
estimated It was contended at the hear
ing that there was no limit upon the
amount that might be appropriated by the
government. But this is in the very face
of the law and cannot be maintained with
out doing violence to its express and un-
ambiguous terms.
This system may have been justified
at that time as a compromise, and as
means Of extricating the District from
reason no longer exists and there is no
reason or excuse for even its nominal
continuance.
But, as a matter Of fact, the half-and
half system has never been in effect in
any practical sense. The amount of taxes
to be assessed and collected has never
been founded upon the one-half of the
expenses Of the District. On the con-
trary. as 1 have said, Congress has fixed
the rate Of taxation at $1.50 hundred
and the basis of assessment at not less
than two-thirds Of the true value of the
taxable property. The needs Of the Dis
trict have nothing to do with the amount
raised. If it happens that the amount
raised by taxation, on this fixed basis.
matched by an equal amount contributed
by the government exceeds the needs of
the District for the year. there must be a
surplus If it falls short of the needs
Of the District, then the District must go
without and suffer the consequences. And
the fact is that the estimates for the
expenses Of the District are founded on
the previous revenues raised by this hard
and fast system of taxation. and not by
the actual needs of the District. 1t is an
portions may be fixed, and is wholly in
defensible.
The effect of this method Of meeting
the expenses Of the District IL clearly
shown by chart furnished me by the
auditor Of the District.
District People Overtaxed.
This shows that the estimate of reye-
nues to be derived from taxation for
> ~
appropriation had been double this, as
the half-and-half system requires. the
amount appropriated would have been
s15,943.8o0. Instead of that the total
appropriation, which we must assume
TO have been what the District needed,
was s12,211. .05445. The people of the
District should have been taxed for
one-h&lf of this amount and NO more,
namely. s6.1O5.52723. But instead of
that by reason of the ard-and fast
s1.50 hundred and assessment at two
thirds value they were taxed $751;
800 Besides that the District was en-
titled to credit Of 100000, as shown
by the chart making its contribution
SS,071,900. So, as shown by the chart.
the people of the District were taxed
for ,S01,392.T7 more than their one
half 1t may be said that this will be
eQualized some time in the future by an
excess appropriation out OF government
funds. but this does not meet the case
by any means. Unless the rate of taxa
changed, the people will, unless Con-
gress is more liberal in its appropria- :
tlons. be taxed beyond their one-half
liability.
What the national government
should do is to treat the District as
what it is-its own capital-and take
full responsibility for everything 1T
needs or should have as the seat of
government of a great and prosperous
nation. without regard to anything that
may be derived from private indiviu-
uals in the way Of taxes or otherwise.
1t should pay its own money to sup
port its own capital.
Proper Maintenance Impossible.