Evening star., 1928-10-28
PLAN DISTRIBUTION
OF 1929 AUTO TAGS
District Officials Working on
Expeditions Method, Supt.
Coombs Says.

Arrangements for the expeditions dis
tribution of the Districts 1929 automo-
bile identification tags were started last
week by Wade H Coombs, superin-
tendent of licenses.
The tags will be placed on sale in
Mr.. Coomb's Office on the first floor of
the District Building December /, but
their use, under a recent order of the
Commissioners will not be permitted
until December is. The color scheme
of the tags is the same that has pre-
vailed for the last several years--chrome
yellow and black. The colors, however,
The numerals will be in yellow and
the background black. The 1928 tags
have black numerals on yellow back
ground.
Virtually one-half of the tags needed
for distribution have been manufactured
during the Summer at the District re-
formatory in Lorton, Va, and are ready
for shipment. They will be delivered
to Mr.. Coombs within the next few
weeks.
Better Tags Made.
This is the second year that the tags
have been produced by prisoner labor
instead of purchased from commercial
concerns. According to District officials
the quality is far superior to those
manufactured by commercial concerns
at corresponding cost.
The tag making machinery was in
stalled at Lorton on recommendation
of the Federal Bureau of Efficiency fol-
lowing the 1927 tag fiasco, when the
commercial concern awarded contract
for the supply that year did not COM
plete delivery until Spring The ma
chinery cost the District $19,274.33 and
the materials for the manufacture Of the
tags the first year cost $4,000.
Between 10000 and $4,000 automo-
bile tags were produced last year in
addition to 2,000 motor cycle tags. Using
this quantity, reckoned at cost of ma
terials as basis of calculations, the
tags according to the calculations of
M. G. Hargrove. District purchasing
agent, would average $0.1176 pair.
Using the same quantity, but taking into
chinery, reckoning life at 10 years,
Hargrove estimates that the tags cost
$01164.
The plan adopted last year of dis
tributing the application blanks to the
police stations, automobile associations,
clubs and other organizations probably
win be followed this year, Mr.. Coombs
said Under this plan motorists are
able to procure the blanks without the
inconvenience of coming to the District
Building and have them properly filled
when applying for tags.
Tax Action Delayed.
Mr.. Coombs pointed out that this
f,Y11 To- ct
year and that he intended to recon-
mend its continuance in report to be
submitted soon to the Commissioners.
District officials had hoped this year
their long advocated plan of making
motorists pay the personal property tax
on their cars as prerequisite to the is
suance of tags, could be put into eff
feet. Congress, however failed to en-
act legislation for this purpose at the
last session, but it will be vigorously
sought at the coming session.
Tax Assessor William P. Richards has
complained repeatedly that hundreds OF
motorists escape the personal tax on
their cars every year, and that this con-
dition would be corrected If Congress will
make it mandatory that the personal
tax be paid at the time the license tags
are issued
The tax assessor has a record of
every nlotorist, and If he fails to make
a tax return on the machine an arbi-
trary assessment is placed against the
vehicle and the owner is sent a bill
carving a 20 per cent penalty. Some
of these bills are never paid, and the
tax collector has found 1t exceedingly
difficult, because of the shortage of
deputies, to force payment. Under
the law, machines on which the per-
sonal property tax is not paid, are sub
ject to seizure.