Evening star., 1918-07-03
FEARS UPROOT|NG
OF FISCAL SYSTEM
H. B. F. MacfarIand Discusses
Attitude of Congress To-
ward the District.

Discussing the deadlock between
the two houses of Congress over the
District appropriation bill. Henry B.
F. Macfarland, chairman of the joint
citizens committee, representing the
Board Of Trade, Chamber of Com
merce. Federation of Citizens Associa-
tions, Bar Association and all other
representative civic organizations. be-
fore the joint congressional commit
tee Of 1916 on the fiscal relation be-
tween the United States and the Dis
trict of Columbia quoting from the
report of that committee. said to-
day:
NO senator or representative would
permit his home city to be treated as
it is now proposed to treat their
National Capital by uprooting its en-
tire fiscal system of taxation and ap-
propriations after forty years of sue
cessful operations in a rider to an
appropriation bill without hearing
and without deliberation.
View of Patriotic Americans.
All patriotic Americans. proud of
the common capital as a result of the
present system, want it continued until
a better system can be devised-a COM
plete system covering all facts and all
branches of the subject, after full and
fair consideration. by the legislative
committees on the District of Column
hia created for that purpose.
THE present hasty and fragmentary
treatment by rider is advocated on a
misapprehension Of facts by all except
those who wish the United States to
pay nothing.
Its advocates ignore the conclusion
of the joint congressional committee
Of 1916, after hearing us and all COM
ers for three weeks. They should read
the report and SO should every other
member.
Committees Report Quoted.
TT concludes in these words:
"Our unanimous conclusion is that
should be fixed and certain; that the
Congress should pursue a definite pol
icy Of regular and liberal appropria-
tions. having in view not only the per-
manent moral and physical advance
msnt of the city, but also it's pre-emi-
nent beauty and grandeur as the
municipal expression of the nations
home and its peoples pride.
TT states that its powers do not au-
thorize it to report new system of
taxation, but it commends the exist
ing assessment as fair and reasona-
ble.' as compared with other American
cities.
TT does not recommend the aboli
tion of the half-and-half plan, but
only says that it need no longer be
applied to District appropriations.
and then proceeds to reason that more
should be appropriated by Congress.
Paragraph Emphasized.
THE change in conditions since
1915, Mr. Macfarland said. emphasizes
this paragraph in the report:
being acquired and held for strictly
governmental Spurposes. Withdrawn
from participation in assessment and
taxation. The Increasing needs of
the Gsmana .s a h aas,ns 9s,ra al
demand more land. more buildings.
more reservations.
The great increase since 1915 in
government holdings here, all exempt
from taxation but receiving all the
DeHeutS OIL INC HluHlClpdl government,
emphasizes the argument that the
government should pay at least one
half"
But the main thing, Mr.. Macfar1and
said, is that the present fiscal system.
both as to taxation and appropria-
tions, which has made the National
Capital and which ramifies through SO
many acts of Congress besides the ap-
'propriation bills. should not be torn
up until complete plans for a better
system can be carefully worked out
"As the joint select committee said
in its conclusion" Mr.. Macfarland
continued, such new system should
provide definite policy CT regular
and liberal appropriations such as
the country demands for its capital
and fixed and certain taxation.
Under the rider the government
need not pay one dollar of the COM
mon expenses for the common capital.
the taxation is thereby rendered un-
certain and would certainly have to
be increased, although it is now high
or than in the majority of American
cities. as the United States census
bulletins show. Advocates of the rider
state in debate that the District tax
payers ought to pay the whole burden
of the maintenance and development
Of the National Capital and that the
government owning half OF. the tax
able values ought not to pay one cent
The Commissioners of the District
of Columbia, if asked, will doubtless
tell Congress that the actual needs of
the District in all departments and in
its general development require far
larger appropriations than are being
made. The Commissioners have not
recommended the rider.