Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1916-10-23
RIPS. OFFICE. I. SEEKERS.
FARMER SHOWS
STATE TAX MONEY is SMALL
PART OF TOTAL.
ROAD LAW HAS NO
PART IN ExTRAvAGANCE
Office Seekers Who Undertake to
Blame State Officials For Expendi-
lures Taken to Task-Food and
Clothing For State Wards to Cost
From is to 20 Per Cent More.
,ecial to Times Republican.


Des Moines. Oct. 23.-In an article on
the subject of where the tax money Of
Iowa is collected and spent, made up
from official figures from the auditor
Of states office, Wallaces' Farmer
points out that 91.3 per cent of the tax
collected in Iowa is levied and spent
by the representatives of the people
IN the counties in which the tax is col
lected. The state gets but 81 per cent
of the general property tax.
Out Of S50055, 1898 collected and
spent in taxes in 1915 ST. per cent was
cor the state, 29.4 per cent was county,
1871 city, 6.3 township, 37.4 school dis
trict and 81 miscellaneous.
The article shows from figures
secured from the state auditor that
there was1a net increase in local taxes
IN 1916 over 1914 of $5,155, 432. but a
decrease in state taxes of $23S,946. In
commenting on this Wallaces' Farmer
says:
when therefore the office seeker
undertakes to place the blame for the
increase in taxes on state government
or on the road law, or on the highway
commission, he convicts himself either
of gross ignorance, or stupidity, or OF
Intellectual dishonesty and deliberate
desire to deceive the voters. In either
case he is utterly unworthy Of support.
Iowa needs men in the governors chalr
and in the legislature who are not only
honest but who can think clearly and
reason intelligently."
! It will be remembered that when the
state executive council few years ago
.reised valuations on property all over
the state many boards of supervisors
old not reduce the tax levy and the
counties therefore raised more money
than they needed. If, for instance,
$4,000 in taxes is to be raised from
81, 900, OG0 worth of property, it will re-
q1ire a higher tax levy than If there
are s20o0.GD0s in property to assess to
raise the same amount. And that IS
exactlyswhat happened when the state
executive council raised valuations. II.
the taxi ievies had been reduced pro-
poftionately to the amount <of money
needed it would have cut down the
taxes quite little to what they were
that year when so many auditors and
supervisors failed to adjust their taxes
to the new valuations.
This article shows that while 37.4
per cent of all the taxes paid are school
taxes, not more than rs per cent OF the
voters manifest enough interest in the
school elections to vote.
State Expenses Increased.
It will cost the state of Iowa from Is
to 90 per cent more for feeding and
clothing the wards of state institutions
this year than heretofore according to
estimates made by members of the
state board of control. At a recent
conference Of the superintendent OF
the various state institutions and the
board this matter was gone over care
fully.
There are now $3.50 wards in state
institutions. Food is costing from 20
to % per cent more for these people.
Clothing is about 20 per cent higher.
Coal is up 10 per cent. There has been
10 increase in the wages Of superin-
tcndents or other employees of the in
stjtutions, the board members say
The number Of wards in the various
institutions at the present time fol:
lows Anamosa, 1888: Fort Madison,
COL: making total Of ], 334 in the two
state prisons. Cherokee 1,0s7: Clar-
india, 1926; Independence, LAP, and
Mount Pleasant. 1.106; making total
oe 4,751 in the state hospitals for the
insane. At the inebriate hospital at
Knoxville there are 159 patients and at
Mount Pleasant there are six In
ebriates, making a total of 165. In the
two industrial schools there are 416
boys at Eldora, and 1873 girls st
Mttchellyille. The orphans home at
Davenport has AGO. The Glenwood In
stitution l,466. Marshalltown old SOL
diers' home has 1923 old soldiers. Tho
Cskdale sanatorium for tuberculosis
has 1853 The institution for the deai
at Council Bluffs has $780,
The state Of course is reimbursed to
some extent for part Of this expense
thru the counties and the counties thru
relatives of the wards and the old
soldiers at Marshalltown who have
property pay into the institution. But
the state is the banker and buys the
supplies and transacts the business
When everything is taken into con-
sideration including the new buildings,