Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-12-17

I2lf play from legislative Judge and
jury.
For the benefit especially of new
members of the Sixty-sixth Congress
a summary of the reasons why CAPT.
tai punishment should not be inflicted
in this case is submitted for thought
full consideration.
National and Local Contributions
Should Be Related.
Two practical questions in respect
vital Importance from the beginning:
ID. Shall the national and, local con-
tftbutfohs be definite or indefinite, re-
lated or independent? (2) Who shall
determine the relation or the amount
Of these contributions, respectively?
The history of the capital has dem
onstrated distinctly that these con-
tributions should be definite and re-
lated; and that, il indefinite and I'M
related. to insure justice each con-
tributor should have voice in deter
mining the amount Of his contribu-
ton.
Since the day of the creation of the
capital the nations obligation toward
the nations city has been the same
primary, exclusive and dominating.
Not the obligation itself. but the de-
gree in which it has been recognized
and met. has been the f1uctuating fac
tor in the equation.
From 1900 to 1s74-1s7s the national
and local capital contributions were
indefinite and unrelated. Each con-
tributed what it pleased toward CAPT
tai upbuilding. The nation measured
it's own obligation in terms of dollars
as next to nothing. The local COM
munity raised and disbursed it's own
taxes at it's pleasure. 1t measured
its capital obligation considerably be-
"a Ii
resources, and twice became practi-
cally bankrupt in performing almost
unaided the nations task of capital
building.
In 1878 the nation confessed it's vio-
lation or gross neglect of it's capital
obligation. 1t gave practical express
sion to it's revived sense of this obli-
CATION in its undertaking to pay one
half the accumulated funded indebt-
edness of the District and one-half of
future expenses. 1t took from the
District the power of self -taxation
right to FIX the local contribution as
we'll as its own. In thus exercising
taxation without representation over
the District the nation safeguarded
the local community by the pledge
that to every dollar collected in taxes
from the local taxpayers should be
added a dollar from the national
Treasury, and that the aggregate rev.
enue should be expended for capital
upbuilding. This provision protected
the District from excessive taxation
by causing a tax-gatherer. alien to
the unrepresented District, to appro-
pirate from his own treasury for the
Districts benefit every time he ap-
propriated from the Districts tax
revenue. Every dollar he took under
the tax power from the local COM
munity increased correspondingly his
~x,,,, nito1 contribution.
Definite or Fluctuating?
1t II now~proposed to release tho
United States from its self-tmposed
promise to contribute definite
cation Of capital upbuilding and to
leave that amount uncertain and Auc-
tuatinE, ON the same basis ms before
1875. But 1t is not proposed to return to
the District it: power which existed
taxation the amount OF Its own capt.
tai contribution. The nation In to
continue to exercise the power taken
i'm 1873 to tax the District rs 1t
pleases, but il freed from the limita-
taxation by the obligation under the
organic act of correspondinEly taxing
itself.
II, however. the nation is not to
snare In paying, the
nation ought not in equity to fix the
amount of local taxation. If the local
community is to raise substantially
all Of the local revenue, it must on
American principles tax itself. de-
termining for itself how much shall
be raised, and by what methods of
taxation. and for what purposes the
tax money shall be expended. Under
these conditions there can be no
lust" or reasonable" local taxation
| imposed by an alien body in which the
taxed are not represented.
Summary.
| The hasty review of pertinent CAPT.
| tai history suggests the following
conclusions:
1. The AuctuatinK plan Of indehnit
| contribution, nxed from year to year
| BY Congress, deprfves the capital Of
| the elective safeguard against excess
| sive local taxation and of the guar
anty OF n substantial annual capital
contribution BY the nation, with which
the half-and-half plan blesses It.
| 2. 1t furnishes no ground whatever
of stimulating and charging the na-
TONS sense Of obligation toward the