The Marietta journal. (Marietta, Ga.) 1918-1944, 1919-04-25
The Sixty-Per-Cen Rule

ME- If the most important questions that possibly
arise affecting the individual welfare of the cltizens
of Georgia. today being put into shape by committee
of Georgans and is likely that the findings OF this COM
mtteee will be put into law very soon
We say that it affects the individual welfare ana so IL
does in two WAYS as we will explain later. This great
question to which we is the fixing of taxing system
for the state 1t has long been well recognized fact
that our present system is put into practce becomes
simply matter of passing the hat and letting every
property drop whatever ne may ke or even 10
neglect to contribute at ALL
We have no ADEQUATE system of locating property, or
of executing the tax collecting law when it is loca
ted Lands bonds stocks, money and every other form
of property held out of the returns, and even where
the return of certain large properties are made they are
generally given at sixty per cent of the true value
Sowel recognized has this sxty per cent return pc
come that it is now looked upon sort of "unwritten
law and practced by the big property owners IN every
county in the state The only variation seems to De
where county secretly adopts fifty per cent rule IN
order to especially of her big property owners
The county tax officers of the state have sort of an
association of the chief objects we have heard to
that all counties play fair with each other ana aoere
to the sixty per cent rule.
With all due Eespect to these gentlemen that SOUNDS
like an association to maintain honor among thieves
Of course the fellows who allowed to use the sixty
per rule supposed to get an advantage over
the ordinary taxpayer for it all used to be the sixty per
cent rule why they might well have stuck to the hun
dred-per-cent rule Of they always have ex-
cuse wanting be thus favored and between them
and the tax officials there is evasion.
The tax payer just says my business of such nature
that it will stand full taxes you must accept it at
lower rate" hence the sixty percent rule Every one
gets asks for it, and who willing to stfle his con-
science while he makes his tax returns.
But to get back to the work going The last
legislature appointed special committee to formulate
new system for the state and report it to the session
this This committee has been at work for some
time and has held hearings the subject in various cities
of the state order to give the people chance to be
heard directly the subject
This committee consists of nine and its recon-
mendaticns will go far toward influencing legislation
which will fix taxing system for possibly years
you will be individually and directly affected by the sys-
tenn applies to tax rate and also by the sys-
tenn provides fails to provide sufficient revenue for
the needs of various state institutions
We printed weeks ago, the tentative outline of the
system be proposed is possible that there will be
reports at least minority report certain parts
of this. We had a talk with member of this committee
day this week. and there is doubt that the larger
business of the will make effort to have
strong influence in the shaping of the tax system,
that it may continue to protect directly their
property from fair taxation
Shall the taxing system be naugurated in Georgia
with provisions in it which will work in the
the present dscrminative sixty rule, to shield
property from it's reasonable and just taxation? The
governor member of this tax revision committee and
he considered the importance of this matter
which before the regular session of the egis
laure when he denied special session for state high
way legislation.