Perth Amboy evening news., 1922-11-29
Stokes URGES
BILL To 0ST0P'
TAX INCREASE
Would Make 1t Unlawful of
Municipality To exceed
1922 Tax Rate
THIS COMING YEAR
Draft of Proposed Law In
Letter Sent to Speaker
elect Evans

TRENTON, Nov. 29:-Former
Governor Edward G. Stokes, Re-
publican state chairman, today ad
vocated a law to be passed in the
next session of the legislature max
ing it unlawful of the governing
body of any county or municipality
to exceed the tax rate of 1922 for
year 1928, in an effort to relieve
the taxing situation in the stasa.
The draft of the proposed law was
contained in a letter by the former
governor to William w. Evans, as
semblyman from Passaic, and Re-
publican candidate for speaker OF
the House of Assembly. The gov
ernor went even further than that,
in the second paragraph of his pro-
posed bill by declaring that it shall
be the duty of such governing bodies
to reduce~the amount received from
taxes on real and personal property,
commencing with the year 1924,
when there shall be a. reduction in
the tax rate by "at least five points
on property assessed at true value:
in 1925 five points less than in
1924" the five point reduction to be
continued each year until the tax
rates in the municipalities have
been reduced to figures to be work.
ed out later.
After asking the consideration of
Assemblyman Evans of the tax
rates in New Jersey, Governor
Stokes said: sit is no exaggeration
to say that the present average rate
on an honest valuation is almost
confiscation. The debts of our coun-
ties and municipalities have in
creased from S47,000,000 in 1890 to
1914, 100000 in 1922"
1t was said that state expendi-
lures have grown until they are to-
day eleven times what they were in
1895. By way of illustration of the
manner in which tax rates have
jumped, Governor Stokes quoted
from a table of tax rates which he
has prepared, comparing the 1915
tax rate in certain municipalities
with the rate in 1921 as follows:
Ventnor, Atlantic county, 1915,
1887; 1921, 434; Camden county:
Haddonfield, 1915, 2.95; 1921, $50;
Collingswood, 1915, 2.27; 1921, S.2S;
Essex county: Newark, 1915, 2.45;
1921, 3.76.
Hudson county: Jersey City, 1915,
1876; 1921, 2.916; West New York,
1915, 2.O69; 1921, 3.S2; Middlesex
county: New Brunswick, 1915, ZAP;
1921, 4.64; Perth Amboy, 1915,
ESQ; 1921, 4.06; Monmouth: Mata-
wan, 1915, 1876; 1921, 4.07; Passaic
county: Passaic. 1915. 1.93: 1921,
$40; Union county: Elizabeth,
1915, 1.99; 1921, 3.02.
The Republican state chairman
declared that the tax rates in New
Jersey range from three and one
hall per cent to seven per cent.
and that the average tax rate for
municipalities in the state has
Jumped from 2.115 in 1915 to 3-61
in 1922.
."It is very easy to spend the peo-
pies money" said Chairman Stokes
NEARLY every legislative body.
whther Democrat or Republican,
finds means of expenditure, but
fails to find new sources OF revenue
except through the old fashioned
method of increasing the rates OF
taxation, a method that requires no
craftsmanship save mathematical
calculation that could be performed
by the ordinary citizen"
After citing his comparison OF the
1915 tax rates with those of 1921,
Mr.. Stokes asserted.
Comment is unnecessary. In
many cases the revenue from prop
erty is scarcely equal to the tax
rate. Honesty shrinks from sit
uation where the taxpayer cannot
meet his obligations out of his in
come, but is compelled to draw in
his principal. Unless this tendency
is checked, the debt of the nation,
state, counties and municipalities,
which now amounts to practically
(Conti1ued on page 4)