The Newark journal., 1918-11-21
Proposed New Constitution


the qualified electors voting at special cleo tion; the bonded debt shall not exceed per cent of the total taxable property of the taxing unit; no bonds shall be issued for longer than thirty years and interest thereon shall not ex- ceed per cent; when bonds issued a spec ial additional tax shall be levied sufficient to meet annual payments of principal and interest.
 There is principle more firmly estab- l 1lished in modern business and finance than that of the issuance of bonds for general public in- lprovements and to refund on long and easy terms existing indebtedness of cities, counties and other units, just as corporations or individ- uals refund their liabilities under more favor able condition and terms Progress and devel- opment demand more resources than can be made available under existing conditions No burden IS fastened on any taxpayer by the adoption of this provision. Any bond issue must be authorized by at least majority of 60 per cent of the qualified electors voting at a special election. The people are supreme and whatever they decide is final. It is their busi- ness. The Constitution cnly supplies the means of carrying out their will. They are made truly responsible stockholders in their county or mu- Inicipal business affairs. The people, at last, shall say whether community is to be pr gres- sive and up-to-date, or lag behind the process lson.
 TAXATION
 Art XIV provides that "all property sub- Ject to taxation shall be taxed according to it's value that value to be ascertained in such man ner as the GeneralAssembly shall direct making the same equal and uniform throughout the state. No one species of property from which a tax may be collected, shall be taxed higher than another species of property of equal val ue.' It is provided that license, franchise, priv iiege, excise, income, inheritance, legacy, suc- cession, production and other specific taxes may be levied and certain classes of propery such as schools, churches, public hoptals, etc. are exempted. Segregation of property to be taxed for State purposes is permitted. No annual tax levy shall exceed one per cent of the assessed valuation. County and municipal levies shall not exceed one-half of one per cent, but an ad- ditional one-half of one per cent may be levied to pay existing indebtedness Counties may form special road districts, and vote special tax not to exceed five mills. By election a mu- Inicipality may levy additional five mills for municipal purposes.
 No other article of the Constitution rep resents the result of so much thought, hard work and deliberation as this. It is the com poste wisdom of three weeks of discussion, in which the whole subject of taxation in all it's phases and from all possible angles was thor oughly analysed. The principle of equality and unifority has been retained from the old Constitution The peoples rights are thorough y safeguarded, and yet the law is made suffi- elently flexible to insure a suffciency of reve- nue. The tax dodger is uncovered, and much property that has escaped it's part of the tax burden will be forced to do its share No ad- dltlonal tax Is levied upon the people, who re- main the sole authority for the evying of addi- tlonal taxes. It is essentially a democratic measure
 It is provided that an Actuarial Bureau to fix insurance rates may be created, to be under the Control of the Insurance Commissioner.