Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-05-02
Increasing the Lump Sum.

Increasing the Lump Sum.
One of the many factors to be con-
sidered by the Senate in approving the
recommendations of its appropriations
committee to increase by 100000 the
inadequate lump sum now carried in
the District bill as the Federal contri-
button to Capital maintenance and de-
velopn1ent is the Governments with
drawal Of large areas of land from the
taxable area and the large-scale i'm
provements contemplated in the Gov
ernment's great building program.
On the one hand is to be studied the
loss in potential revenue to the city
that results from transfer to the exempt
list Of valuable real estate; on the other
the increase in revenue that would &C
crue to the municipality if Uncle Sam
were to become a taxpayer and make
his contribution to the District on the
basis of his real estate holdings For
under the building program for the
city now authorized or appropriated for,
the Federal Government Is increasing
or improving its realty holdings in the
District by an amount appproximating
$227. 800 900.
Opponents of the principle of fixed
ratio in appropriating for Capital main
tenance and improvement, who likewise
have become opponents of increasing
the inelastic and arbitrary lump sum,
contend with all the enthusiasm of con-
verts to new belief that If the Gov
eminent actually based its contribution
to the District upon the value of its
real estate holdings the $4,000, 900 lump
sum would represent an excessive tax
upon an excessive appraisal and in
reality it therefore should be decreased.
No one will contend against this ar
gument. The point is that the Gov
ernment's real estate holdings and i'm
provements, to be enormously increased
under the great Capital improvement
projects so wisely undertaken by the
Congress, is merely one important fac
tor that must be considered in arriving
at an equitable contribution to the
running expenses of the municipality.
It is not commended that this is the
only factor. 1t Is not contended that
the United States, possessed Of exclu
sive legislative power over this COM
munity, solely responsible for its ade-
quate care and development, should
merely tax itself as a real estate owner
and rely upon the city, unique among
cities of the world as to its limited
taxable resources, to supply the re-
mainder.
The strongest obligations resting
upon the Nation are equitable in their
nature and based primarily on the cir
cumstances of the Capitals creation,
and the treatment of the Capital by
the Nation ever since the birth of the
Nations city. In the beginning the Fed
eral Government planned magnificent
Capital, covering a large area and
characterized by broad streets, avenues
and reservations to an extent insult
able for self-supporting commercial
city. BY the terms of its bargain with
the original owners of the soil, and by
the declarations of its representatives
then and in the years since then, the
Federal Government showed an inten-
ton to build up national city, at the
Nations expense. on grand scale, ir-
respective of the future population of
the city.
In 1873 the Government, which had
In the beginning implicitly undertaken
to meet all expenses of Capital making
and then shifted that burden, in the
main, upon private citizens, decided that
justice required it to pay one-half of the
Districts expenses. That practice and
principle were followed until 1922, when
the practice was changed to 60-4O in
stead of a $3.50 ratio of appropriation,
but the principle was retained. In 1925,
evading but not withdrawing its own
pledge, Congress instituted lump sum
system of appropriating for the Capital
and the lump sum was fixed for that
sented 30 per cent instead of the lawful
40 per cent of the total to be divided
with the District. For six fiscal years
the 100000 has remained, while the
proportion it represents has dwindled
to 215 per cent in the bill for 1881 as
passed by the House.
Guided by its study of the resulting
condition of District finances, both from
the standpoint of equity and practical
necessity, the Senate appropriations
committee proposes to increase the lump
sum by 100000. The Senate should
agree.