Evening star., 1923-09-27
HOLDS OUT NO HOPE.
/. FOR CUT IN TAXES.
Representative Green Tells
/ Association He Expects
! 4. Few Changes.
By the Associated p

By the Associated Press.
WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS. W.
Va, September 27.-The outlook for
reduction of the national tax burden
at the next session of Congress- is
not favorable, Representative Gre en-,
republican,. Iowa, declared here tor
day In addressing the National TaXN
Association. Certainly there can be
no reduction if the soldiers bonus
bill and a public building measure
are passed, in the judgment of Mr..
Green, who is in line for the chair
manship of the House ways and
means committee, which lpasses upon
all tax matters.
Beyond measures for simplification,
Mr.. Green looks for few changes in
the tax law, but says there will be a
strong effort, supported by4a consid-
cradle popular opinion. for the reim-
position of the excess profits tax. He
absence of need for additional reve-
nue. probably would be a deterrent
suHlcient to prevent this or other new
taxes, such as a levy on undistrib-
uted profits and sales tax
Seek Easy Way to Evade.
The Iowa representative declared
the present system of corporate tax
ing taxation, adding that he did not
belleve the American people would
permit this state of affairs to con-
tinue Indefinitely. In this connection,
MT. Green said. Henry Ford was pop
ularly supposed to have the largest
income of any citizen of the country,
and that while no one knew what
income tax he pays, 'it is certain that
1t cannot be at all in proportion with
his income"
The Ford company" the speaker
added. sis continually adding to it's
Investments by buying coal mines.
iron mines and railroads, erecting
new factories and constructing more
and more of the parts of the automo-
bile that has made Mr.. Ford famous
While technically no income has pass
ed thereby to the stockholders: as a
matter of fact, their riches have in
creased to the amount of these in
vestments. and yet they pay no in
come tax thereon.
Income Distributed.
Besides this it is perfectly easy
for any corporation to issue stock
dividend and thereby, for all r'rac-
ttcal purposes, put the surplus under
the control of the stockholders in
such a manner that they can use Ii
as they see fit. In this way an enor-
NOUS amount of dividends has, in ,tf-
Iect, Deen distributed to StOckhOlde rs
without the payment of any income
tax.
'At present there is little prospect OF
a change in this respect, for the adop-
tion of tax on undistributed profits
would render necessary sweeping
changes in other parts of the laws.
Also it should be said that there are
difficulties in framing a measure of
this kind so that it would work out
fairly"
Mr.. Green advocated an additional
inheritance tax on tax-exempt Sc
curities and denial of deductions on
income from such securities. He IA
vored also levies on gifts above a
certain amount received in each tax
able year and declared the law should
be so changed as to prevent creation
of trusts for the purpose of avoiding
taxation.
Transportation Pays Per Cent.
More than per cent of the total
tax burden of the nation in 1921 was
collected from three agencies of
transportation, the motor car, steam
and electric railways, according to
figures presented by John E. Walker,
former tax adviser to the United
States Treasury Department
The total national, state and coun-
ty tax burden for that year was ap-
proximately $S,950.000,000," said Mr..
Walker, land of this amount more
than $700.000,000 was drawn from
taxes levied against transportation
in addition to numerous special i'm
posts of one kind or another Dur
ing the same period, about $1,000. .000.-
900 was devoted to the highway con-
struction and maintenance program"