The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1921-08-16
Minority of House Committee
Votes Against Report.
Republican Majority Passes Bill
to the House.
MANY LAST MINUTE CHANGES
FOrbids ReOpening Accounts
With Nations r. r..
President and Judges Exemp:
From Income Tax.

Washington, Aug. 16.-Charging
that the tax revision bill prepared by
the Republican majority OF the house
ways and means committee fails to
give relief to the poorer class of tax
payers" the Democratic members of
the committee voted solidly against
the reporting of the bill today. The
bill was formally reported out by the
Republican majority.
The committee amended the bill so
that the war finance corporation in
its funding operations will not be
permitted to reopen accounts of rail-
roads with which the government has
made final settlements of claims
growing out of federal control. The
bill also was amended to an absolute
limit of $500, 900 on the amount
which the war finance corporation
may expend in purchasing railroad
securities from the railroad admin
istration.
Senator Stanley. Democrat, of Ken
tucky, offered an amendment to pro-
hibit the war finance corporation
from making use of any money now
held by it in the federal treasury for
the purchase of securities from the
railroad administration. The amend
ment was rejected by vote of Z to 8.
Government Must Economic.
The majority report on the bill, SUBJ
mitted to the house today, declares
that tax revision is necessary to aid
business in reaching a normal basis,
but warns that str!ctest economy in
government expenditures must go with
the tax revision.
The majority report estimates that
the bill reduces the tax burden by
$790,330,0O0 approximately 81 per
capita, or $35 for the average family
The aim of the bill is to reduce
taxes and not to shift the tax burden
the report declared.
More Changes Made.
Before reporting the bill, the COM
mittee made the following changes:
The tax on net incomes of life insur-
ance companies was reduced from l :
to 1914 per cent, foreign companies
to be taxed upon their earnings in the
United States, this tax replacing taz
of cents on a hundred dollars, for
merly paid by the policyholder.
The tax on corporations to become
effective January 1. 1922, was reduced
from Is to 21k per cent.
The tax on cereal beverages was re-
duced from II cents a gallon to
cents a gallon.
The tax on capital assets was fixed
at 5 per cent on income from these
assets above $4,000 annually
The committee also provided that
the treasury ruling for determining
capital gain or loss shall become ef-
fective on January l, 1922 instead OF
being retroactive to January. 1, 1921.
Increased exemptions were inserted
for heads of families to $2.500 for in
comeS not in excess of $4,000. S4O,-
| 900. 900. Additional exemptions for de-
pendents. increased to $400, from
/ 5000, 100000.
No Tax for Harding.
other revisions include. however,
! the exemption from taxation of the
compensation received by h presi-
dent of the United States, and the
judges os the supreme and inferior
courts of the United States. and
amounts received as compensation,
family allotments and allowances un-
der provisions of the war risk jnsur-
ance and vocational rehabilitation acts.
The bill contains upward of $1,000
words, and is entitled "a bill to reduce
and equalize taxation, to amend and
simplify the revenue act of 1918, and
for other purposes"