The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1919-05-31
PHOSPH ATETAX
BILL Is KILLED
IN The SENATE
SENATOR STOKES TAKES PRoMl-
NENT PART IN LONG DEBATE
IN FAVOR OF PASSAGE OF
MEASURE.
(sY- HERBERT FELkEL.)

d
i Tallahassee, May 30.--After a debate
that consumed practically all Of
omrning's session of the senate. the
King bill to tax the output of phos-
plate mines as personal property was
killed, a motion to indefinitely post
| pone, made by Senator Eaton, pre-
Ivailing by a roll-call vote of 16 to IL
/ The amendment by the author. which
has ben previously published in full
lin this correspondence and which Sem
ator King had hoped would make the
bill satisfactory to all parties con-
| cerned, was offered and adopted. after
which the motion to indefinitely post
pone the bill was made. An extern
sive discussion followed, concluding
with the vote on the Eaton motion
which was as follows:
Ayes: Senators Andrews, Anderson.
! Eaton, Hulley, Igou. Johnson, Lowry.
Mathis Mcleod, Moore, Oliver, Piynp
lton, Rowe, Russell, Singletary and
TurnbuH (16).
| Nays Senator'S Calkins. Baker,
bradshaw. Cash. Crawford, Crosby,
lHughIett, King. MacWilliams, Malone.
Roland, Stokes. Turner and Wilson,
(14.)
The bin provided that each mine
should make a return of the phos-
plate as it was taken from the ground
and that it be assessed as other per-
! sonal property. but stipulated that
phosphate lands be assessed no more
than other wild lands or lands in the
neighboring country.
Senator King called the motion to
indefinitely postphone his bill cold
blooded and declared it was not freak
/ measure He said this valuable prop
erty and growing industry of the
state would escape taxation If the bill
were not passed. He said the argu-
lment that the phosphate miners had
Host money recently was not Well taken
because all mining operations were
more or less in the nature of specu-
fIations. That was not reason why
/ they should escape taxation, said Sen
fator King, for farmers and all other
business men occasionally failed to
make money. He did not think the
law would impose burden on any
/ body The senator took a position in
/ the center of the senate chamber and
spoke at length on the bill, making
| a hard but unsuccessful fight for the
4 bill.
i Senator Crosby said he had never
been disposed to assail the corpora
tions, but that this was fair bill
| and the committee having 1t under
/ consideration had given all the par.
/ ties interested ample hearing. It
would not be double assessment, he
said, and would work no hardship
upon the people of his country, in
i his opinion
/ Senator Singletary opposed the bill
] on the ground that the tax would
come out of the farmer who bought
| the phosphate and in the end the user
! of the fertilizer would have the freight
/ to pay.
i Senator Johnson stated that he be-
4 lieved in the phosphate mining COM
4 panies paying a just share of the
/ taxes. but he feared this bill would
b not result in an equitable solution
of the problem.
Replying, Senator King said that
II the supreme court recently had de-
cided in test case appealed from
/ his county that lands could not be
1 heavily assessed just because 1t was
believed that they contained phosphate
and that the tax assessors of the state
could 10 longer impose the former
blanket tax which has been declared to
be unconstitutional
Senator Eaton did not believe the
companies would take advantage OF
the supreme courts ruling He said
he favored an income tax for all In
dustries but he did not think 1t just
land right to single out one class or
business for this kind of taxation.
Senator Stokes declared the bill
was similar to the laws of states in
which much mining was done. that
washington county was boring for oil,
That Escambia soon would begin drill
linz that Santa Rosa county was min
linz q material for the manufacture OF
lives. and that the King measure COW
III cred all kinds of mining operations. He
said the law might as We'll exempt
from taxation railroads and banks anu
Ia ,vvers because some of them did
mot make a living.
Answering the argument of Senator
lSingletary, Senator Stokes oeciareo
that the farmers also used leather
shoes and wooden clothing and harness
land that it would be just as reason
liable to exempt these manufactures
from taxation on the ground lnat the
farmers used their products as 10 e&-
Tempt phosphate miners me uiel-
mate consumer always pays III the
wind up he said, and the man VINO
finally buys the cabbage 10 eat VIII
pay for the phosphate ana the tax
upon it, not the farmer. have voted
for an appropriation to protect one
of your South Florida industries, but
when you now ask me to vote to ex-
lempt from taxation another large in
idustry. YOU are asking too much.
81 Senator Eaton said the bill was un-
81 Just and unfair and declare that, YOU
might as well attempt to tax farm
er's crop after he haryests it after
Having already taxed his land. or tax