The gazette-times. [volume] (Heppner, Or.) 1912-1925, 1922-08-17

willingly pay out IN income taxes Ll
.per cent on its excess income above 3l5,-
900? Instead Of creating a reservoir
from which funds for public purposes
may be drawn, the grange bill viii
tend to dry up the reservoir we now
have.
Odd idea Of Fair Taxes.
The oranges" idea Of measuring tax
having ability, as reflected by net in
income is sadly warped in its bill. One
who has $1,000 Of net income is suppos-
ed TO possess something more than twice
the tax-paying ability Of one with $1,000
of net income; and so on along the as
eending scale Of income. Il would nat
urally be supposed that the PROFESSIONS
in tLe rates Of the bill would bear sC-ie
reasonable relation TO the net income.
But this is not so Twice the tax-paying
ability Of $1,000 is taxed three times as
much; five times $1,000 is taxed Is times
as much; 10 times $1,000 is taxed So
times as much; and so times $1,000 is
taxed $50 times as much. One with $780,
| 900 net income assuredly has somewhat
more than SO times the tax-paying abil-
ity of one with $1,000, but he does not
have nearly 900 times such ability, and
it is nothing but robbery to attempt to
tax him in any such proportion.
Constitutional Amendment Income Tax
Measure.
The constitutional amendment is a
backfre to the grange" bill. If it should
be adopted, the grange" bill, being in
conflict, would fall to the ground as I'M
constitutional. Certain people who gave
rather too willing ear to the early spring
outcry from ofice-seekers and others
for a state Income tax, and having ad-
vance knowledge Of the sort of a bill
the "Grange" had in preparation, drew
up the amendment as a conservative"
proposition. Many of them would now
like to see both the grange" bill and
the amendment defeated, and | am
among those who hope their prayers will
be granted. To me, the amendment is
Objectionable for several reasons, among
them: (a) 1t commands that one-half
the taxes for the support of the state
government shall be raised from in
comes, whereas the income tax is too
uncertain in its practical operation to
be relied upon for any specified percent
age of taxes; (b) it makes mandatory a
personal and a corporation income tax,
when it may be very desirable at the be-
ginning of an income, if we do have one,
to confne it to individuals; (c) by the
method Of computing income tax to be
levied each year, it saddles forever upon
the state the proportional rate, when
the future may determine that some
reasonable degree of progression may
be desirable.
| consider the provisions for raising
one-half the state taxes by an income
tax and for determining the annual rate
as highly Objectionable. As the rate will
necessarily vary from year to year, il
will always be an unknown quantity, anc
people, whether engaged in business oil
not, will be sorely vexed in making W
their statements and estimating the ia,
to be paid.
Most people have run past themselves
in considering the value of an income
tax as a part Of the revenue system o.
|, Oregon, either as an additional methot
of taxation, or as substitute for some o.
the existing forms of taxation. Man!
!. have been Influenced to favor an incom'
: tax largely by their knowledge Of in
comes during the war and the two year
following its close. Those were the day
= of high prices and excess profits and al
= that went with initiation. They hav
!, gone, and in their stead we have an Ore
: gon under fairly normal conditions. Tn
normal Oregon is a state Of $500
. square miles, and about $4,000 popula
! ltion, and considerably less net ineom
! than it reported to the government tw
: years ago.. Opinions differ on the ques
= Ition of whether or not Oregon is fruit
= full soil for planting the seed of the in
}, come tax. The majority opinion Nigh
seem to be in the affirmative, but
: does not favor any such legislation as
proposed by the grange" bill or tn
!. constitutional amendment. What such
tax has produced for the federal govern
ment is shown by the following figure
for Oregon individuals for each yea
a since 1915;
A - If -- r.,