Evening star., 1931-12-17
HOUSE APPROVES
ESTATE LEVY AND
GAS TAX INCREASE
Continued From First Page)

s24 instead of $3.50 will increase the
amount collected TO that of other cities.
Representative Frear also summarized
approximately $l4O00O0O in taxes
which, he argued, should be collected
oelore what he describes District dole"
is appropriated.
UOO,OOO annually should be paid before
any District dole can be properly or
justly fixed" he said.
Chairman Mapes, in briefng his
statement on the income tax bill, said:
The truth is that the home owners
in the District Of Columbia ought to
welcome this income tax bill now before
the committee. If people do not have
an income, they DO not have to pay an
income tax, but the home owner who
owns house and lot has to paw the
general property tax whether he has
the money to pay it with or not or
whether he has an income or not II he
cannot pay 1t. he loses his home. One
Oh the purposes OF the committee in re-
porting this bill is to relieve to some
extent the general property tax The
committee believes in the principles of
an income tax. 1t believes that it is one
OF the faireSt and most equitable taxes
that can be levied and it believes that
It should be adopted for the District CT
Columbia"
Hits Present Plan
In presenting his proposal for COM
mission fo'm OF Goyernmc NJ flr this Dis
trlct, with measure OF home rule. R-p-
reSentatlVe La Guardia said:
I feel it would have been more con-
structlve had We appointed a comm ttee
TO1o fNr
organization of the municipal govern
ment of the city Of Washington The
present arrangement is cumbersome,
unW1eldy, and unsatisfactory. Congress
can not, in the very nature Of things,
devote the time and attention which
the details OF municipal government
require. Just think of it, The paving
and repaving of streets, the opening Of
streets, lamp-posts, pushCart peddlers.
and many, many petty details that a
municipal government must attend to.
comes before the House Of Representa-
tives and the Senate. with no one par
ucularly interested in the subject mat
ter.
1T is simply impossible to resolve this
body into board of aldermen to prop
erly attend to District matters.
Wants Model City.
Il believe the city of Washington
ought to be a model city in every way.
1t ought to have the best schools of the
country, the best police and fire depart
mentS, and the best street-cleaning de-
parment. and up-to-date health depart
ment, and proper supervision of hous-
ing. 1t ought to be the model NUM-
cipal government of the whole country.
/ Therefore I believe we should give the
~f ~,
trict of Columbia some study. I be-
| lieve We should provide a managerial
form of government. with proper con-
troll and supervision by Congress- but
limiting the powers of Congress TO the
supervisory end Of it, instead of trying
to do the work Of a board of aldermen.
II submit that some reorganization
OF the District government ought to be
brought about in order to relieve the
Congress of the details of board Of
aldermen. A city manager should be
provided; the people Of the District
should have voice in the election Of
the Commissioners; the government
should be properly represented in the
commission managerial form Of city gov
ernment. The budget should be sub
mitted to the Congress for approval and
determined as to its contribution which
comes out of the Federal Treasury. In
studying the conditions of the City OF
washington and the tax rate conditions
here are not comparable to any other
city in the country. We have no in
duStries here, and properly so. We have
more space taken up by public buildings
than is usual in any other American
city. We have more bouleyards and
avenues and parks, necessary to provide
proper landscaping for our monumental
public buildings. Therefore we cannot
compare conditions in the City Of
Washington with those of any itdusA
trial or commercial city in the country"