Evening star., 1928-11-25
More Equitable Assessment
of Districts Businesses
Hoped For by Committee.
Navy Sections Of Present
Legislation Apply to Trades
Long Obsolete.
BY JAMES E. CHINN.


license tax law, said to have long i'm
posed an injustice on many classes of
business and allowed Others a freedom
from taxation, was virtually completed
yesterday by committee of municipal
and Federal Government officials, who
several months ago undertook to re-
vamp the entire code at the request CT
Representative Gibson of Vermont,
chairman of the District subcommittee
of the House. Finishing touches will
be added this week and the reconstruct
ed law put in final shape for congress
sional consideration and action,
Changes made by the committee are
said to be the most exhaustive and far
reaching any District legislation has
ever undergone. Few, If any, sections
or paragraphs of the existing law es-
capped modification.
Out of the committees work, how
ever, will come what Is expected to be
fair and equitable license law; one that
will make concern pay in accordance
with its volume of business and Its cost
to the District for inspection and pro-
lection. It also will bring under the
broad scope of its provisions number
of new business which have come into
existence in recent years and not now
required to pay a license fee.
Many Provisions Out of Date.
Ringgold Hart, principal assistant
corporation counsel OF the District, IS
chairman of the committee. Those who
have assisted him with the tedious de-
tails of the work are Wade H. Coombs,
superintendent of licenses of the Dis
trict. and D, P. Evans of the Bureau OF
Efficiency. The committee has met al
most daily in order to complete its tasS
by December l.
Congress gave Washington the pres
ent license law nearly 81 years ago.
when barrooIns.. carriage and wagon
building and harness making were
thriving and fiourishing businesses.
Progress has since relegated wagon
building and harness making into a
state of obsolescence, and prohibition
came along to convert barrooms into
soft drink establishments. But the
license act did not change to meet
these new conditions. 1t still contains
the original sections relating to these
obsolete businesses. In fact, aside from
a few minor changes in phraSeology ana
insignificant amendments the law
stands today almost exactly as 1t was
when placed in the statute books, July
/, 1902.
What the committee has really done
is to modernize the old law, eliminating
the provisions relating to barrooms,
herdic operations, cattle selling and
carriage and wagon building and re-
placing them with provisions that take
cognizance Of preSent-day businesses
that have developed since the advent
of the radio. the automobile, prohtbi-
ton and whatnot. At the same time,
however, it rearranged the schedule Of
license fees.
Hardware Business Overlooked.
BY some strange fate, or perhaps an
utter oversight, the hardware business
was overlooked when the original license
law was framed. No restrictions were
placed on door -to-door peddlers except
the license requirement and the pay
ment of the prescribed fee. Motor
busses, like the radio, were yet to be-
born, and no revenue tax is derived
from their operations, save from those
owned and operated by the street rail-
way companies.
These conditions and scores Of others
with equal or more glaring inequities
exist under the present law. For in
stance, the proprietor of a small arm
chair lunchroom who barely manages
to exc out an existence, pays the same
amount in tax as a hotel restaurant or
any other large eating establishment
with an enviouS income. BY the same
token, the tax on the cigar distributor
whose annual turnover runs into the
millions, Is the same as paid by the
corner cigar merchant who seldom sells
a full box at one time. except, perhaps.
around the Christmas holidays. In
other words, the dealer Is taxed on his
type of business and not on his volume
of business.
There also are inequities of another
nature. Concerns which do not handle
foodStuffs, flowers, explosives and in
flammable materials and do not require
frequent inspection by various munic-
ipal agencies, are forced to pay license
fees as large. and in some instances, in
excess of other classes of business which
cost the District government large sums
every year for the maintenance Of
trained inspection forces.
The Washington Base Ball Club Is
one impressive illustration. The fees