The Alaska daily empire., 1920-05-19
SPENDING ORGY
 GIVING WAY ID
 INFRINGEMENT
luxury Buying Continuing But Peak Passed, Says
 Revenue Collectors

NEW YORK, May 19.-Luxury buy ing in New York is now going on at the rate of $1,2O0, ,000,000 year judged by the amount of luxury taxes -aggregating $1O,5OO.O0o a month - which are being collected by William H. Edwards, United States Collector of Internal Revenue for Manhattan In February. according to the Col lector, the government received S2.- 900, 900 more in luxury taxes than was paid in any previous month in the history of the department The month of April probably will exceed them all. The receipts, he says, have been mounting higher and high CT for six months.
 What some people call the orgy of spending has not exhausted it. self said MT Edwards today. but my men. in their talks with mer- chants and others who pay the great bulk of the taxes, have been told that the peak of eXtravagance seema to have been reached and that the period of retrenchment is close at hand
 "We hear a lot about the income and excess profit tax which falls due in the spring of every year and about the hardships in meeting it but the fact is that the steadiest tax and one which is least felt by the public, and of which we hear very little. fs the luxury impost. The poorer chap who buys his girl an ice-cream-soda doesn't grumble any more at the penny or two tax any more than his fiance with diamond tiera or touring car. Neither misses it as the item is so small as compared with the expenditure.
 Theatres Prosperous
 "A kings ransom was spent for candy last December but the biggest revenue came from dealers in jew elry, furs and automobiles.
 ''An interesting thing about the luxury tax is that more revenue is being derived from ice cream sodas and other small sales which carry a penny or two of tax than there is from the sale of motor cars, dia monds and other luxures Drug gists paid a large sum on expensive perfumes and cosmetics. Every man. ufactured. producer ol importer. are required to make such returns as will clearly show each taxable trans action in the sale of certain goods and these are verified by revenue officers. Section BOA of the Revenue act of 1918 provides that 'on and after May 1. 1919 the tax of ten per cent shall be levied and collected on all luxuries, including many kinds of expensive articles in daily use. In the sale of these articles the dealer acts as a collection agency for the government Other taxes are paid in the form of stamps. Deductions Allowed
 "One of the reasons for the fall off in the receipts of income and excess profit taxes this year was the deduction which the taxpayer made for the sums which he paid to the government for luxury, proprietary and other taxes. Here is an illustra- | tiOn: Let us say that a man takes his wife to the theatre twice a week. He pays $6 each time he goes for | two tickets. The tax on each of | these tickets is thirty cents. On four seats week he pays $120 and in one year $62 40 He is privileged to de duct that from his net income be fore computing his income tax The same rule would apply to any other tax he may have paid to the govern
 ment during the year. A person, however, is required to prove that
 he actually expended the money fol ] luxuries if any question is raised on l his return. There have been com
 paratively few attempts at evasion
 In fact, the amount received by this
 office in luxury, and other taxes, is
 a monument to the honesty of the
 majority of the people of this city.