The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1918-08-08
A WAR TAX ON AUTOS.
Minimum Federal Levy on Cars to
be $40.

Washington, Aug. IA federal
graduated excise tax on the use OF
automobiles, running from $lO q
year on cars originally retailed at
not exceeding $500 to $50 tax on
$4,000 cars and $40 additional for
each $500 above $4,000, was agreed
to yesterday by the house. ways and
means committee, which is framing
the new $4,000, 100000 revenue
bill The tax applies directly to the
owners, while the tax OF ~ per cent
on gross sales of automobiles and .
Der cent on gross sales of automobile
trucks, agreed to Tuesday, applies
importers of ears. The tax on, use
OF cars is based on the original re
tail listed price of the cars, regard
less of the year OF manufacture.
The committee also agreed to a
tax of g cents per gallon on the pro
duction of gasoline and federal ex.
else tax of So a year on the use OF
motorcycles Members of the COM
mittee stated that, while the manu-
facturers' tax and the owners tax
are differentiated, it is generally be-
lieved that the owners ultimately
will have to pay all the tax in the
Increased prices,
excise tax is expected to yield APP
mr0ximatelv S12o. 100000, and the
gasoline tax $4,000, 900.
War protiteering was the subject
NDf prolonged discussion yesterday,
with technical calculations as to
the way of revenue as compared
with other revenue plans. There
was a disposition ultimately to agree
on some additional form of tax to-
reach large corporations making
heavy profits that might not be tax
ed sufficiently under the excess
Chairman Kitchin issued this
1--WE took up the luxury taxes yes
terday. We put tax of s. year
on motorcycles. On AUTOMOBILES, on
the original retail listed prize
1917 or any other year, we put a
tax beginning with $40 a year on
cars originally listed at not exceed
ing $500 1t is immaterial when the
user got the car or how old it is.
This is a federal excise tax on the
use of cars. On cars above $500 and
rot exceeding $3.50 the tax Ak would . be be
80: for every $500 more up to the
original price of $4,000, al, addition
al tax of $40: and for each further
$500 above the $4,000 class an adj
ditional tax of $40. All this. will
bring in not less than S125, 100000
revenue. Trucks are included in
this classification tentatively; they
can do as much damage to the roads.
t'We put 2 cents a gallon tax on
the producer or manufacturer OF gas
Oline, which would yield approx
.mately 45,O00,O00 the committee
passed over the subject of war prof
1ts.' ,,no
war profits as a separate proposltlon
were passed over, the excess pro1ts
schedule includes war profits; re
said the excess profits tax will reach'
The corporations making large profits,
both before and after the beginning
OF the European war, and under that
schedule concerns making 100 per
cent profits on invested capital turn
ed over heavy revenue to the gov
eminent after the regular deductions
had been made.
Mr.. Kitchin announced that there
were $50 many thousands OF sug-
gestions' as to luXuries taxes that it
had been decided to create subcom-
mittee to consider them apart with
recommendations next Saturday.
Representatives Hull of Tennessee,
and Helvering of Kansas, demo-
Gratis. and Moore, Pennsylvania, re-
publican, were named on this COM