The producers news. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1918-1937, 1926-10-01
THE Scent GASOLINE TAX
By County Surveyor Hans Rasmussen


Last winter l told you through the Producors
News how invitations had been sent ont to An
leaders" OF representative businessmen" to hold
a meeting at Helena. The meeting was called for
the purpose Of: "rectifying the blunders Of the
last legislature"
also told you that, if we do not look out thew
are going to slip something over on us for which
we will be sorry afterwards
What told you is right before us now. we are
gong to vote on it November End. it is in the
form Of a cent Gasoline Tax and they are slim
ping 1t over in such a clever way that it is hard
Tor the average person to find any fault with #
On election day you will be handed ballot which
will look like this:
FOR GOOD ROADS IN MONTANA-Initia-
tive Measure Nc. 81.
AGAINST GOOD ROADS IN MONTANA
Initiative Measure No 81.
We all want good roads and a lot of peonle are
going to vote FOR it, without taking the trouble
to find out just who going to pay for these
good roads.
II the ballot had read: FOR or AGAINST 8 Cent
Gasoline Tax, people would know what they were
voting for; there would be no fooling about it, AS
1t Is, It's just scheme, just clever way of fool
ing the public
Montana Automobile Association is sending ont
articles to every newspaper in the state boosting
the Cent Tax these articles are not written. no
they are set up in type, just ready to go into the
press, the editor does not need to use his brain at
all, just stick the tailormade article in the press
and let her go. 1t is not one article but a whole
armful each paper receives, the azier the editor
the more of them he prints.
Some people think this cost of a lot of money
and are worrying just who pays for it-don't worry
about that part if the measure goes through there
will be sc million dollars to spend. If that money
Is spent as 1T has been in the past, someone can
well afford Financing this campaign
1t Is interesting to read the articles sent out in
teresting to see how they juggle with facts
and figures, just to fool people, They will tell
you that if you will only dig up the Cent Case
line Tax and hand it all over to the State Highway
Commissioners, then the Federal Government will
make a present of an equal amount, even
little more, and wonderful roads will be built all
over the State, only costing 100000 per mile
without any cost to the County The State is
going to maintain these roads forever and forever
without any cost to the County, did you ever see
worse bunk?
Is it not the people in the County who are pay
ing this money, is it not who are paying the
Federal money, every time you and 1 buy new
car we pay part into the Federal road fund.- it
is all our money, money that belongs in the Com-
ty Now they want to fool it away from us and
turn it over to the State Highway Commission
After it is handed over to them we have absolute
ly no more say over it, they build roads where
they want, how they want, and they can sauander
it as they please. If you and 1 do not like the
way our money is spent we kick, yes, where
are we going to register our kick with the State
or with the Federal Government and what good
will it do, at the very best we might as well kick
at the moon.
The State will keep on maintaining the roads
after they are built at cost Of $4,000 to $4,000
per mile each year. That sounds nice don't it,
but they are only going to maintain them long
as we turn the money over to them to do it with
and no longer.
They will tell you that work will be done in
each County each year in proportion to the money
available, but they have been careful enough to in
sert in the BILL $50 far as it may be possible" 1t
would be foolish to start work in the Sc counties
at the same time; just where the work will be
started l do not know, it is not going to be in
Sheridan County, and it is a question if they will
ever get here.
They will also tell you that only so will be
spent for administration, 92c out of every dollar
will be spent for actual road work That don't
look bad does it, but let US look and see what
has been done in the past let US see if the money
has been handled in the past that we can feel safe
in turning some more over to the same parties.
Thos H. Macdonald, chief of the u. S. Bureau
of Public Roads, should be a man who knows
what he is talking about He conducted an in
vestigation to find out just how the Federal Aid
Money was spent His report shows that only