Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-05-10
ADJUSTMENT NEED
SEEN IN INCOMES
American Association OF
State Highway Officials
Urges Simplicity.

simplidcation in levying motor license
fees and gasoline taxes for highway
construction and maintenance is being
called to the attention of A legislative
bodies now in 1891 sessions.
There is a tendency, according to q
bulletin issued by the American Asso-
citation of State Highway Officials, to
reduce the registration fee and make up
the reduction on the gasoline side Of
the ledger by increasing the fuel tax
In the Judgment of highway ofacials,
this Is wrong in principle, because the
total income from both sources is needed
to maintain the highway bank account
at safe and satisfactory working level.
Moreover. the tendency to lower one
and raise the other does not necessarily
mean an increase, but In some cases it
will mean an actual decrease in the
total amount coming in for construction
and maintenance.
No Standard Form.
"In the matter of needed uniformity
a comparison Of the receipts from Ii
cense fees throughout the country" the
bulletin continues, Shows that among
States using the same method or meth
DDS in determining how the fee shall be
secured there is no standard form
There are II States. for example, which
use horsepower alone as the determin-
ing factor. and yet the schedules Of
rates are so different that the maximum
amount received per motor vehicle in
this group Is 1888, while the minimum
Is $6.84-a difference of $13.04 per We
hicle. Four States use horsepower and
net weight as the factors, and their re-
ceiptS vary from $3.50 to 1857.
1.-TWO States use horsepower and gross
weight The schedule of one Is Is
cents per horsepower and IS cents per
100 pounds, while the other is 1914 cents
per horsepower and SIS cents per 100
pounds. They enter the financial hop
per at different rates. but one comes out
at $17.73 and the other at $17.72.
six States use gross weight only,
and the treasury Is helped 1894 per
car in che State, and the least must be
satisfied with 1891. A dozen States use
net weight only, and they range from
$3.50 to $26.68. TWO States use a nat
rate and get the same income-$5.65
per car.
Methods All Their Own.
Seven States each have a method
all their own. One uses value In
pounds net weight; one, value; one,
cost price: one, cubic inch displace-
ment one, manufacturers list price;
one, net weight horsepower and times
registered; and, finally, one uses COM
bination Of factory price. net weight,
horsepower and times registered. And
yet after all this trouble the amount
received per car is only 1929. The way
some Of the schedules are made would
seem to justify the conclusion that sim
plicity in method and schedule used is
greatly to be desired
THAT there Is justice in the arzu-
ment that, with the retention of the
motor license and gas tax, the motor
vehicle should be exempted from per-
sonal property taxation is shown when
that argument Is accepted by IS States.
While there may be few ears which
for time escape the licelnse fee, none
can escape the gas tax. Moreover, 1t is
a notable fact that the property tax is
very unequally administered, and in
many instances is entirely ignored. En-
tire elimination of the property tax,
which in most cases does not 90 for
road purposes, should be recommended
to the States which have not already
abandoned this plan of taxation.
"All Of which," the bulletin concludes,
should be done during the coming ses-
sions Of State legislative bodies as a.
means Of simplifying the levying of
revenue for highway construction"