The states-graphic. (Brownsville, Tenn.) 1???-1984, 1916-01-14
HOW AUTO TAX
is DIVIDED
NEARLY 90 PER CENT GOES TO
COUNTY ROADS
Additional Fee of 81 Goes to County
Court Clerk, and Expenses Of Col
lection Go to the Secretary of
to Defray Expenses.


The rush for automobile license has
been unusually heavy during the past
few days, and Secretary of State
Sneed was forced to place an add
itional clerical help in the office in
order to get the certificates and num-
Der plates out to the applicants. But
little trouble has been experienced in
collecting this fund, as all except the
small expense incident to the collec-
tion goes to the highway of the state
forming the first state aid ever gwen
to highways, in Tennessee.
The law provides that no one shall
operate an automibile, auto truck, mo-
torcycle, traction engine or other mo-
tor driven vehicle on the public roads
of the state of the state without first
securing from the secretary of state
certificate or permit, for which certain
fees are charged. While, in effect, it
is tax, it is, in reality fee for the
issuance of the certificate. For sever
al years it has been the law that GER
tifcate must be had for which fee of
81 was charged, but the owner must
then furnish the number plates which
in most cases cost an additional So and
the So fee went into the general treas
uryof the state.
Under the new law, the owners of
lmotor trucks and traction engines
pay fee Of $5, motorcycles $3.50; au-
tomobiles of four passenger seating
capacity and under, $5, and for more
than four passenger seating capacity
$3.50. An additional fee Of 81 must
be paid to the county court clerk at
the same time. The secretary af
state must now furnish the number
plates and no other number plates are
permitted to be used. All old number
plates not bearing 1915" on them are
obsolete and the same as if no plates
was used.
While the secretary of states Of
flee is behind with the issuance Of the
new plates, it is supposed that no ac-
tion will be taken for the present
against automobilists who still carry
1915 number plates, but as soon as the
rush is over and there is no longer
any excuse for failure to obtain the
new licenses it will become the duty of
the grand jury of each, county to in
vestigate and indict every automobile
owner who does not carry 10 6
number plate on his car.
The secretary of state is permitted
to deduct from the total amour col
lected the expense of collection, such
as furnishing the number plates, post
age, express, printing, etc, and the
balance is turned over to the state
highway e. AID can be used fo1 no
- i - neilse u tlit COZ
lection vii be extremely small
After going to the state treasury
the fund is placed at the disposal of
the state department of highways.
The department is entitled to 10 per
cent of the fund for expenses of op-
Grating the department and the re-
naming 80 per cent goes back to the
several counties, each receiving aid
in proportion to its payment, to be u.s.
ed as a fund for the maintenance of
"state highways" under the direction
of the highway department.
The Highway law provides that the
department of highways shall select
and designate in each county in the
state a system Of roads connecting
every county seat IN the state, and
these shall be known as estate high
ways" and the money available for
each county shall be spent on these
state highways under the direction of
the state department.
Officials of the department will be-
gin within few days an inspection
of the county seat road and the task of
designating the system of state high
ways. This will be finished, officials
say, before April /, when work will be
started on a system of maintenance in
accordance with the amount of money
available for the counties. In many
instances the fund for counties will
be very small, but officials of the de-
partment hope, through uniform
system, to be able to inaugurate sys- :
tenn of accounts which, by the use of
modern methods will aid the counties
in getting much more work done for
the money expended than has been
done in the past,
The fact that 80 per cent of the
funds collected are to be spent on the
roads Of the county from which it is
collected and that the other 10 per
cent is for the maintenance of the
department, which is fighting
for better roads, has caused owners Of
automobiles to pay this tax with less
complaint than is usual in the case Of
a new tax. Practically the only COM
plant heard has been over the fee Of
81 paid to the county court clerk for
the license in the county
the registration is made to enable Off
cials to secure the names Of owners in
case Of accidents, etc, The local au-
toists do not object to this registration
MANY claim the fee too large and an