Great Falls daily tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1895-1921, 1919-02-11
FIVE SISTER TAX
BILLS 7 THRU
HOUSE IN GROUP
One Creates State Com
mission; County Equal
ization, Another.
CLASSIFYING AROUSEs
DIFFERENCE Of OPINION
By WARREN w. MOSES.

Helena, Feb 10-Experiencing but
little opposition and being subjected to
SO little change that they emerged VIZ
tually intact, the big taxation and reve-
nue. measures upon which the JOINT house
and senate committee on taxation mas
beer working up to the present time
this afternoon came out Of the commit
tee of the whole house and were subse-
quently passed On third reading.
The consideration Of these measures,
five in all, had been made special order
of business for II a. m, the house lmme-
diately after convening going into com
mittee of the whole with Fuller in the
chair.
Representative Rasmussen Of Dawson
county. author Of the various tax bllls
and chairman Of the house committee on
revenue and taxation, first addressed
the house. advocating the adoption OF
the entire program. He said:
For the purpose of carrying ont the
recommendations Of the tax commission
which has been in existence for the past
two wears. we have introduced five IN
terlocking bills. These are practically
those recommended by the tax commits
sion, in fact, other than for a few
amendments made necessary to conform
to legal requirements, they are identical:
Introduce New System.
"In introducing these measures, we
are asking the pepole of Montana to
accept a new tax system. This system
is not untried because it is in vogue in
36 other states of the union, and let
me say, that, of all the states adopting
the system. not one has gone back to
the old method. Your tax commission
has worked faithfully during the past
two years and these bills are the re-
suit. 1t has studied the tax laws of va
rious states and has dealt with a great
mass Of facts and figures before reach
ing its final conclusions.
The joint committee on revenue and
taxation consisting Of seven members Of
the house and seven members of the
senate, has had the bills under consid-
Grafton for three weeks has gone over
them diligently, has had before it rep
resentatiyes of organizations Of farming
and business interests. tax experts and
alleged tax experts, and after listening
to the views Of these men and after
going into the recommendations Of the
tax commission. the committee could
find very little to be changed.
Eorty-three Systems in Vogue Now.
1T must be remembered that no tax
system OF any state mas been perfected
in two years time, and this may have
to be changed in some particulars. We
now have in this state 43 different sys
TENS of taxation. Each county has a
system of its own. The assessors meet
in convention and decide upon a pro-
gram. and then 20 home and make their
assessments upon whatever basis seems
applicable to their individual localities.
"We must have one central body. /
don't criticize the assessors individually:
nv criticism is one of the system. | DO
not hold that we have an ideal method
here. but we probably have as good as
could be devised under the circum-
stances"
The State Commission.
The first Of the bills for consideration.
house bill S, providing for the creation
of permanent tax commission. was
then read, and this bill providing for the
appointment by the governor, with the
advice and consent Of the senate, of a
tax commission of three members, one
for term ending March i. 1921. one
for a term ending March /. 1923. and one
for term ending March /, 1926, and at
their expiration of their several terms
that successors shall be appointed for
terms of six years.