Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-12-11
RESIDENTS PAYING
LIONS SHARE TO
SUPPORT CAPITAL
Results of Survey to Be Laid
Before Trade Board Group
Tomorrow.
PER CAPITA TAX LEVY
SECOND HIGHEST IN U. S.
Comparatively Low Rate Offset
by Tremendously High Assess
ment on Real Estate.

A picture in black and white por-
traying the taxpayers Of the District
Of Columbia a bearing their full bur
den as residents of an American
municipality as we'll as contributing
the lions share for maintenance and
development of the Capital of the
United States will be presented to
full meeting tomorrow night of the
Board of Trade by its municipal
finance committee. The report will
be presented by Joshua Evans, jr.
chairman of that committee.
The picture. drawn from numerous
data and tabular statistics concerning
Washington's taX-produced revenue
in relation to the revenues of com
parable American cities, shows. with
other things, that:
On With only 60 per cent of its real
estate taxable, Washington has the
second highest per capita assessment
of any city in the United States. ex-
ceeding by 1868 the average annual
salary of the sass Federal employees
on Uncle Sans pay roll in the District
of Columbia.
Realty Assessments High.
(2) While Washington's tax rate
may be low, its real estate assessment
is tremendously high. the increase of
S204, 900 600 in assessments last year
alone being greater than the combined
increases during the last three years
in the assessments of any of 13
cities of comparable size. Since 1924
Washington's real estate assessment
increase exceeds by $40 100000 the
combined total realty assessment in
creases of 10 of Is cities chosen for
comparison. One of the cities, Balti-
more, shows an increased assessment
in the last 3 years of S226, 900, 900, but
this has been offset in some degree
by a 51-cent reduction in the tax rate.
90 That the cost of maintaining and
operating the municipality of Wash
ington, when considered in relation to
the budget for the District as a
whole, is proportionately far In ex-
cess of that of other cities because
of the demands placed upon local gov
ernment by the Federal establish
ment
(4) That the 10000 owners of real
estate in Washington are carrying the
greater portion of the 70 per cent Of
the cost of maintaining and develop.
ing the Capital drawn from District
revenues, leaving with the remaining
125, 900 900 citizens of the United
States a responsibility for Capital DE-
velopment and maintenance expressed
through n contribution of less than %
per cent
Survey Shows Situation.
b1a
:ited above were secured by the office
of the secretary of the Board of Trade
after a survey last Summer, con-
Quoted by sending a prepared ques.
tlonnaire to the Chambers of Com
merce and the Boards of Trade of
more than 100 American cities. This
survey was undertaken upon the sug-
gestion OF E. G. Brandenburg, general
counsel of the Board of Trade, who
proposed that the data upon which
the board has heretofore based it's
conclusions relating to municipal
finance and its contentious concerning
apportionment of expenditures be-
tween the District and the Federal
governments be revised and brought
up to date. In eXhaustiveness, the
survey is comparable only to the work
of the Joint Citizens Committee on
and the United States, undertaken In
1915 by that body, and which was sue
cessfully used TO disprove charges of
low taxation in the District and to
bring about retention in law of the
fixed ratio of apportioning expenses
between the District and the Federa7
Government.
The work undertaken by the secre-
tarys office of the Board of Trade
was based on the understanding that
the remaining taxable property In
Washington, now reduced TO so per
cent of the total, is subject
to further and further en-
croachment by the Federal Govern
ment, and while this encroachment
will increase, the limits of the city
are specifically established that after
departing on a year-to-year basis from
the statutory 60-40 ratio of appropri-
ating for the Capital, the Federal
Government has annually decreased
its proportion so that in the present
fiecaI year it is less than a 1926 divi-
sion of costs, and if this decrease Is
maintained in the face of increasing
costs of Capital maintenance. the Fed.
eral contribution will become almost
negligible. And finally. by being the
seat Of government. the Capital is de-
prived of that source of revenue lying
in the industrial establishments which
have brought wealth and prosperity to
American communities comparing in
size to Washington.
Text OF QUESTIONABLE.
The QUESTIONABLE distributed by the
board follows:
l. Name of city.
2. Population.
3. Total true value of taxable real
estate.
4. What is the tax rate per 500 as
sessed value on realty?
5. How much revenue does this pro-
duce annually?
6. What is the total assessed value
Continued on Page 4, Column 81