Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1918-05-09
NO REPEAL BY RIDER
OF FF|FTY-F|FTYL Law
Senator Salisbury Shows That
Joint Committees Report
Does Not Favor Repeal
Without Definite Equit-
able Substitute.
TAX ASSESSMENT FAIR

The Gard amendment to the District
appropriation bill, doing away with the
governments obligation to contribute to
| the Districts maintenance on the half
and-half basis and leaving the federal con-
tribution indefinite, uncertain and fuctu-
ating. does not carry out the report of the
joint congressional committee which in
vestigated the entire question Of financing
the District, in the opinion of Senator
Salisbury of Delaware, member of
that committee.
Senator Saulsbury's Statement.
Senator Salisbury, who is the only
member Of that committee representing
the Senate now in office. said today
Mr.. Gard was entirely mistaken when
he told the House that his amendment
was in accordance with the report of
the joint committee. The same. he said,
was true Of the remarks Of Mr.. John
son Of Kentucky in regard to the Gard
| amendment.
The report Of the joint committee" )"
said Senator Salisbury, distinctly
stated that the half-and-han plan of
appropriating for the District of CO.
lumbia, which is part of the organic
| act should be retained until some bet
| ter plan was found and enacted into
| law. I do not think that an amend
| ment or a rider to an annual appropri-
! alton is the right way in which to at
tempt any legislation of such vital i'm
is it fair to the people of the District.
II change in the organic act of 1878
| is to be made, it should be made
| through separate measure, after
| careful consideration.
Position Of Committee.
The report Of the joint committee
| showed that for forty years this city
has gone along admirably under what
! is called the half-and-half system The
committee went no further in its report
| than to say this arbitrary rule need no
longer be applied to District appro-
priations; that it need not be applied to
District appropriations if there is some
better rule suggested, or If there is
| some legislation enacted which renders
| tthe application of this rule unreason-
able.
ANY one who sat on that committee
and heard the pleas of the people Of this
District must know that this half-and-
half system is the right to which they
cling with great insistSn0e.r II il what
they feel Is some protection to them,
and. in q way, think 1t fs
Il consider that 1t Is the general wish
Of the people Of this community that the
conditions Of taxation and of appropria-
low the precedents Of the last forty
years. I think that is reasonable hope
and it is the only thing certainly that
the people of the District can rely upon
to come reasonably near what they de-
sire.
No Better System Offered.
s0rhe~o hoe baap M haitian r,,.%.r, s,,.
gested so far as know, and have fol-
lowed the matter closely. I shall con-
tinue to support the half-and-half plan
until something better and more equi-
table is suggested.
'I cannot see how we are going to
make this a splendid and magnificent
capital IL we do not take from the gov
ernment of the United States funds
which have been regularly contributed
to beautify this capital. and are to rely
entirely upon taxation in the District,
as we may have to do under such an
amendment as that offered by Mr.. Gard.
think that we ought to consider that
the people Of the District should in
measure be protected, and we should
not spend for the purpose Of beautify-
ing the city as a national capital money
which they contribute without, in
measure, bringing from the pockets of
reasonable amount to be added to these
dollars contributed by the citizens OF
the District.
"If the Gard amendment should be
enacted into law the effect will be in
large measure to wipe out the or
ganic act Of 1878. under which the
Capital city has grown and developed
| for forty years. For the Gard amend
| ment undoubtedly changes the exist
| ing law in a most important way.
! Better Than No Measure at All.
n
| on either side is better than 40 per
cent on one side and 81 per cent on
| the other. But so per cent is better
| than no measure at all, until you have
win give reasonable opportunity for
the citizens of Washington to be rep
| resented and to have the proper right
] of appeal"
question of taxation in the District and
i the charges which have frequently
been made to the effect that the people
here are undertaxed. pointed to the
findings of the. Joint committee which
| went extensively into this subject.
"The Joint committee found" said
Senator salisbury, "as follows: we
| find from the evidence of fair-minded
men, residents of Washington familiar
with real estate values in general. that
| the present assessment of real estate
in Washington for taxation is fair and
reasonable
Senator Salisbury said that approx
mately the same sum is being raised
per capita in this city for municipal
purposes as Is being raised in other
we'll regulated municipalities of a SIM
| liar size and similarly situated.
Origin OF Half-and-HaR Law.
In conclusion. Senator Salisbury
| quoted from the report Of the joint
| committee as follows:
I'VE believe the fact that the ma
tional appropriation has averaged half
Of these expenses (of the District) is
not the result of chance but Of design.
and that the half-and-half law. which
| was conceived as an economic neces-
| oppressed District and its tax-paying
| citizens, was justified by the exigencies
| of the time and the conditions Of that
! consensus of the best thought of that
the federal government should definite
| it's citizens in the payment of this vast
| debt incurred for public works This.
we think. is the real reason for the
| passage Of the half-and-half law"
| Senator Salisbury said he believed
| that the same reason of justice de-
manded its retention until some other
plan which would give adequate pro-
| lection to the citizens Of the District
| had been devised and enacted into law
Constantine Passes Crisis.