Evening star., 1932-04-07
DISTRICT GASOLINE TAX RAISE
TO BE DEBATED TOMORROW
Commercial and Civic Groups Complete
Attack on Auto Weight Levy
Before Senate Committee.

Spokesman for commercial and civic
groups having completed their argu-
ments against the Mapes committee
plan of automobile weight taxes, the
Senate District Committee, presided
over by Chairman Capper, is preparing
to take up at 2:30 pm tomorrow the
bill which seeks to raise the gasoline
tax from to cents a gallon.
Witnesses for local organizations ap-
pearing at the final weight tax hearing
yesterday united in opposing the weight
taxes as outlined in the Mapes bill,
although the Federation of Citizens
Associations approved the revised plan
recommended by the Efficiency Bureau.
The difference is this: The Mapes bill
weight tax to pneumatic-ti vehicles,
while the bureau would confine the
weight tax to pneumativ-t vehicles,
starting at 5000 pounds, and solid-tire
vehicles, at 1000 pounds This would
omit private passenger cars from the
weight tax schedule.
Witnesses Are Listed.
Among those who testified were Je-
rome Fanciulli, executive secretary Of
the Commercial Motor Vehicle Owners
Association r. j. Murphy, Washington
Automotive Trade Association; Mark
Lansburgh, president Of the Merchants
and Manufacturers Association; L. A.
Carruthers, heading a committee of the
Federation of Citizens Associations:
Capt. H. c. Whitehurst. engineer of
highways; Cole Greenway of the Rail-
way Express Agency, Inc, and G.
Thomas Dunlop.
Asserting the main object of the
House weight tax bill was to help find
new taxation locally that would enable
the Federal Government to reduce its
In the cost Of maintaining
the National Capital, Mr.. Fanciulli told
the committee that neither the House
plan nor the revision Of 1t by the bureau
would be fair and equitable to citizens
of the District
Mr.. Fanciulh stressed the fact the
taxes paid by motor vehicle owners in
other cities enable them to operate over
far-f1ung State highway systems
whereas commercial vehicles in the
compact area of the District of Colum-
bia must be prepared to operate in ad-
joining Maryland and Virginia.
Deprived of Advantages.
The District, he said, is deprived of
many of the advantages in tax-raising
that other cities enjoy. pointing out
nearly all of Washington's suburban
area lies outside the District bound
aries. He said the District, therefore,
provides place of employment for
many whose taxes are not paid In this
jurisdiction.
Mr. Fanciulli contended Washington,
confined to about TOO miles of city
streets, should not have to pay taxes
based on the tax requirements Of large
States, with long mileage of State high
ways.
That the opposition to some of the
Mapes bills has spread beyond the
of the city affected by them
is indicated by the fact the American
Petroleum Institute will have repre-
sentatives at tomorrow's hearing to
speak against the doubling of the gaso-
line tax. The institute will be repre-
sented by H. T. Klein Of the Texas Co.,
New York, and w. T. Holiday Of the
Standard Oil Co of Ohio. Cleveland.
The weekly press statement Of the in
stitute contains quotations from The
Star, explaining that since the gasoline
tax is applied entirely to street paving,
Federal Government from part Of its
streets of the Capital, and that even
without an increase in this tax. the
local community is bearing nearly the
whole burden of the street system.
Dangerous Precedent Seen.
The Institutes opposition to the pro-
posed increase is based on a resolution
adopted in January by the board Of di-
rectors, expressing the belief that Fed
eral enactment of Accent tax would
establish a dangerous precedent al
though interests Immediately adjacent
to the District might regard the in
crease as unobjectionable, because the
tax rate would be brought into line
with the higher rates of Maryland and
Virginia.
Local organizations of motorists, as
well as civic and trade groups also Will
take part in the gas tax hearing to-
Speaking for the citizens federation
on the weight tax question yesterday
Mr.. Carruthers said he does not hold
that the automobile, either directly or
indirectly, should defray the entire cost
of road construction, half the cost OF
bridges and all expense OF the traffic
which was recommended
by the Efficiency Bureau. He said the
automobile should bear a large per cent
of the cost of construction of high
ways from curb to curb. Continuing,
he testified.
Another comparison that I think
should be given consideration is that
Washington as a city, compared with
other cities of approximately the same
size is receiving from automobile own