Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1918-05-10
WASH|NGTON'S BIG
NATIONAL TAXES
District Pays More Than
Twenty-Five States; More
Per Capita Than Thirty->
Six States.
CAPITAL NO MENDICANT
Editorial Correspondence Of The star.]
THEODORE w. MOVES.


| from taxation, and his constituents b'
made to pay their tax burden. Repre-
sentative JUL was unable to under
stand why Washington should draw OF
the states of the Union for any aid. OF
should "pass the hat around to the for
ty-eight states of the Union" or shoult
! Took to the rest of the country fol
| charity"
! When Congress, in 1916. affirmed the
findings Of the joint congressional fisca
committee concerning the performance
by nation and capital community re-
spectively of their equitable obligation:
in the upbuilding of the nations city
Washington rejoiced in the though
that 1t mad been acquitted forever OF the
offensive and slanderous charge OF tax
| shirking and of mendicancy.
| The Joint committee declared on over.
whelming evidence that the half-and'
half law IS fair to the nation, tnat On
der 1T Warrington pays its full cquitnbie
and Is adequately assesscd and taxed
| and that instead of paying less than M
present for capital development the ma
tion should in equity and In response
TO patriotic pride pay moro.
Under Organic Act Washingtonian
Pays Enough.
First, in regard to what the Washing
tonian. should equitably pay. the COM
mittee recommends that the people OF
Washington pay a tax comparable In
assessment, rate and amount to that
tax paid by the residents OF other cities
similar in population and location to
the city of Washington. This. we pc
foI
should be no greater exaction in taxa
tion from the people of the District o1
Columbia. with the payment Of such
taxes : the financial responsi-
F., bility Of the residents OF the Dlstrlc'
should be concluded"
The committee further finds that
under the operations of the existing
half-nnd-half law District residents
are now assessed and taxed UP to the
limit of local taxation. which, they say
committee declares that the presen;
assessment valuation OF privately
owned real estate In Washington 1s
fair and. reasonable; the payment OF
ments as they are now constituted fs q
fair and reasonable response in such
taxation for municipal benefits re-
ceived by the citizens of the District
proximately $16 per capita. In the
judgment of your committee this Is q
reasonable tax levy at this time. espe-
cially when we consider. as we must
that large proportion Of the popula.
the taxes imposed" And Senator
Works adds: 1.-THE people of the Dis
trict are not undertaxed. They are. in
my judgment. bearing their full share
Of the burden Of the expenses Of the
they are being taxed too high"
In these words the committee Wig
orously indorses the haK-and-half law
as absolutely fair to the nation in ex-
acting from the District every cent OF
tax money (and perhaps little more>
that could equitably be demanded in
conformity with the wise standard OF
measurement and of intercity compare
sons approved by the committee. Clear
ly the half-and-half law ought not to
be changed If the result Is to increase
the proportionate- contribution Of the
Washingtonian and to make heavier
his tax burden. What change has ever
been. or Is now, proposed which does
not have this effect?
Nation Pays Too Little.
The committee declares that under
the half-and-half law the Washing
tonian does not pay too little. 1t also
affirms that under this law the nation
does not pay enough. Running through
the report is the suggestion that the
city should be largely increased. and
not. as demanded by the last House, be
radically decreased or entirely elimi-
mated And Senator Works takes this
position unequivocally. pointing out In
! specific detail the neglected obliga-
tions of capital upbuilding and urging
the more liberal appropriations Of ma
| tional money needed to meet them.
The committees words on this point
are as follows:
"All this means that the national
city. the nations home. should be dis.
trict where the national authority IL
not only supreme. but a district where
the Just pride of great people should
ner most fitting to the dignity Of the
citizens. whose manifestation Of cen.
trail government it is.
LAS a conclusion. which should be OF
the greatest weight, we urge upon Con
gress that its appropriations for the
expenses of the District Of Columbia
should always be in such sum as will
| not only continue the city of Washing
! ton and the District of Columbia in
every respect as the splendid and beau
tiful central residence of this great ma
tion, but also cause it to become and be
| forever maintained as model for all
| the cities of the world.
/ Our unanimous conclusion is =
| IndC Ine IOnSTeSS SnOulU pursue q Oen-
| mite policy of regular and liberal ap-
propriations. having in view not only
| the permanent moral and physical ad-
vancement of the cityAbut also its pre-
| eminent beauty and grandeur as the
municipal expression of the nations
home and it's peoples PRIDE
WaahingtOnIana, instead Of contribute
ing little or nothing toward capital up.
building and ndornment, have given
~ the ground from the proceeds OF
| the sale of which as lots the original
public parks were secured and ali the
original public buildings were erected
| and for many years maintained and de.
veloped3 (2D the broad streets ana ave.
| nues Of the capital, constituting more
than 0ne-half Of the original city, (3l
| nearly all the cost Of municipal main
| tenance of the nations city up to 1874
| 7s, and since that time One-hnIf of such
| cOsts and 90 from the very beginning
| down to the prevent day Washinxto-
MANS have contributed to the national
! funds used for the development OF the
| nations city on the same basis ms 0the,
AmeTlcans, and In amount per cnnitn
| far more than the average American
outside Of Washington.
Washington's National Taxes.
| The fact that the people of the Dis.
| trict of Columbia contribute on equal
| terms with the people of the states to-
ward all national taxes, and that 1t ID
| their money as much as the money OF
| the people of any state which fs spent
in national development of the nations
'(Continued. on Fourth PaRol