Evening star., 1930-12-11
TAX OVERHAULING
FOR CAPITAL URGED
BY NOTED EXPERT
Continued From First Page.)

He said he doubted whether the street
railway companies in Washington have
had any net receipts in some years and
that in justice to them perhaps it
| might be advisable to reduce the pres
ent taxes.
IF those companies are not COM
planning about the tax, would you still
favor a revision?" asked Chairman
Mapes.
IT don't think the companies would
complain" DR.. Page replied Their
rates are fixed by law and the people
who pay the tax are really the street
car riders and it may be wise to make
revision"
Discussing DR.; Pages proposal for
an inheritance tax, Representative
FTear OF Wisconsin pointed out that
many people complained that when
they pay two taxes on personal in
come 1T amounts to double taxation. DR.
Page said that it was not dual taxation
at all, but the payment Of taxes to two
dlnerent governmentS-the national
and municipal.
DR.. Page explained that in the States
that have an inheritance tax, the Fed
eral Government collects 20 per cent
OF the tax while the rest of it is left to
the locality. In the District, however,
ne said, the entire yield goes to the
Federal Government, because the Dis
tr1ct does not have an inheritance tax
This Is an unfortunate thing for
the adjoining States" said DIR. Page.
Some men of wealth establish a resi-
dence in the District in order to avoid
paying an inheritance and income tax.
know of one wealthy man who did
this. 1t resulted in long and difficult
iltlgatlon between the State and the
heirs and I don't know whether the
case has yet been settled"
DR.. Page said he favored an In
heritance tax for the District based
on the same principle as that in the
States. He said, however, he did not
believe there should be separate in
heritance tax collected by the United
states and another by the District, but
that the inheritance tax law should
be brought into conformity with SIM
liar laws in the States.
I'VE don't need more taxes imposed
in the District" declared DR.. Page.
IF the committee contemplates an in
come tax it ought to be imposed as a
substitute in full for the tax on in
tangibles.
THE tax on tangible personal prop
erty should be discontinued. Tangible
property in the District is made UP
chiefly of the stocks Of merchants and
automobiles, and it probably does not
exceed more than $5,000,000 in total
value. The income derived from its
taxation is negligible-it hardly justifles
the cost Of assessment.
The mercantile tax should be i'm
posed as a business tax, and the auto
mobile tax should be regarded as a
consumption tax, as is the gasoline tax.
In effect, 1t would be the same as tax
an tangible personal property"
DR.. Page told the committee that he
did not believe it was the intention of
the trainers of the Constitution or Con-
greSs that residents of the District
should escape taxation or pay an un-
reasonable amount, and pointed out that
he believed the first and most necessary
step in settling the recurring controversy
over the fiscal relations question would
be q revision in the Districts tax system.
after that is done" he declared, "the
Federal Government should meet the
additional expenses due to the fact that
Washington is the Nations Capital" !"
In reply to q question by Chairman
Mapes, DR.. Page said 1t was possible
under this plan for the people Of the
District to raise its entire budget under
reasonable taxation without aid from
the Federal Government, but that such
a situation likely would not happen.
LII. EdSe, III pIOpOSdl
fixed real estate tax, said that the
country toe long had followed the prac-
tice of relying on tax on real estate
to meet its expenses. This Is having
a rather serious effect on the social con-
ditions of the country as a WHOLE" he
said. 'It Is an autgrowth Of old con-
ditions when real estate was the only
source of wealth that could be found"
Would Have To Make Study.
Representative Beers of Pennsylvania,
asked Dr. Page at this point what he
considered a reasonable tax. He re-
piled that he would have to make q
study to determine what people are
paying in comparable cities before he
could answer that question.
Chairman Mapes said he thought
that with a fixed real estate tax there
might be a tendency on the part of
the assessor to keep assessments down.
This condition, he pointed out, would
force the Federal Government to con-
tribute more and more toward the ex-
penses of the District.
DR.. Page said he did not think that
such a condition would be so likely to
arise in the District as in the States,
because the tax assessor here Is exempt
from political alliances.
THE District assessor as well as other
District ofnclalS, said Chairman MapeS,
live here and want to be thought well
of by their neighbors and there would
be a natural tendency to keep the as
sessment down"
yes" interposed DR.. Page, "but the
District tax assessor is responsible to
men whose interest lies in the opposite
direction"
"Your statement on the fixed real
estate tax would not be complete, DR..
Page" said Chairman MapeS, unless
you tell us what you think the fixed tax
rate would be-"
ST would want to make q closer
study of rates that prevail in other
cities before I expressed on apinion on
that point" answered DR.. Page. T
believe, however, that the real estate
in Washington is assessed higher than
in other cities"
DR.. Havenner explained as soon as
he took the stand that he represented
an organization having delegates from
81 neighborhood citizens associations
and city-wide organizations, repre-
senting 10000 taxpayers.
Asks Equal Distribution.
1.-THE question of fiscal relationship
between the Federal Government and
the government of the District OF CO.