Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1918-11-30

PAY OUR TAXES
Half of Pennsylvania Record
Breaking Revenues From
That Source

Half of Pennsylvania's record
breaking revenue for the fiscal year
of 1918, which colsed officially to-day
came from corporations. Inheritance
taxes furnished over $5,60O,O00; au-
tomobile licenses almost $4,000, 900
and liquor Licenses, S1,555, 1000. The
total revenues amounted to S44, 1885,
36S.74.
The capital stock tax for the year
amounted to SIS, a rec
ord-breaker; loan tax. $4,255,
gross receipts. $2,142.665.52; gross
premiums, S166,299.27; penalties,
$23,032.73; accrued interest, $34,-
$50; twenty-nine with bonus and
other items, making up the total.
Collateral inheritance tax pro-
duced $3,O0S,142.OS and the new
direct inheritance tax, $2,643. 462.13,
with these items from mercantile Ii
censes: Retail, $1,25S,S6S.S1, and
wholesale, $556,91S.1S.
The retail of the liquor licenses
shows: Retail, S574,929.15; whole
sale, $612,472.59; brewers. SELL
2SO.50; distillers, s15,542.7o; bot
tiers, S25.102.22. The billiards. and
pool license brought in $137,5S7.52,
and pamphlet law sales, $41.12.
Loans of boroughs were taxed
$637, 7,979.09, and school district loans,
$305, ,124.72.
Hunters licenses were $2S1.-
276.90, and chiropody licenses, $175.
The oleomargarine licenses broke the
record with $461, 1,S90.69.
Fines for twenty different offenses
from violation of game to fertilizer
laws produced many thousands of
$4,000, and for violation of the
mattress law, 500 with $1,295.10 for
Sabbath breaking.
Escheats amounted to $32,1e1.T4,
and conscience fund payments were
$220.72, an unusually low figure for
anonymous paymep-s The state got
So for sale of property and $S1.73
for the sale of drinking cups in the
Capitol. The sale of picture seals
produced $5,0S5.75. The receipts
from toll houses, which were sold as
soon as taken over, were S77O.27,
while the sale of Highway Depart
ment maps yielded $437.
The sales of articles manufactured
in prisons amounted to S169, $3.50,
and highway contributions were
S176.42.
No t only did Auditor General
Charles A. Snyder break the record
in receipts, but he was able to meet
expenditures of SAP, 2,407,064.7O,
which also went to a high water
mark and to effect many reforms in
the office. When it is realized that
every tax settlement has to go
through thirteen hands the task con-
fronting the department in smash
ing records can be understood.
The highest previous receipts, $780,
663. 3.O39.2S, were for the year 1916.
In the year 1916 there was included
$15, ,424,2T5.10 of capital stock tax
for a period of fourteen months. De-
Quoting $2,203, ,467.S7, a proportion
of receipts for two months which is
in excess of the regular period of
twelve months, would leave the high
est receipts for a corresponding
period for any previous year of s34,-
459,571.36; making this years in
creased revenues for like period
over any previous year of $9,666,-
657.35.
The receipts for the year ending
November 80, 1917, were $31,70O,-
1895. The falling off in this year,
the first of General Snyder's admin
istration, was caused by the condi-
ton in which his predecessor left
the office, compelling General Snyder
and his workers to crowd practi-
cally years work in seven months.
The average receipts for the first
two years of General Snyders term
is given as $37,913,359.0
During the year 1918 the Bureau
of Corporations made the following
settlements:
Corporations, 54,7O9; school and
borough, 1000; banks, building and
loan. etc, $500; making a grand to-
tai of 62,209 settlements.
During this same year no esti-
mated settlements were made against
corporations who failed to file re-
ports, as was the case in previous
years. The reason no estimates have
been made, as in previous years, is
that General Snyder is desirous of
cleaning off the books all dead cor
porations which run into thousands
and which were estimated against by
former administrations and result
ing in false assets being placed on
the books which were uncollectable.