Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1932-03-24
Soaking the Poor Man.

The latest salary reduction scheme
considered by the House Economy Com
nnittee should for the sake of honesty,
be labeled a special super-tax on in
comes earned in the Government service.
1t is nothing more nor less than that.
and If the plan emerges from committee
in the form thus far outlined it should
be subjected to the same sort of dis
cussion that would attend a proposal to
levy an exorbitant tax of II per cent
on the gross incomes Of any other spe-
cial class Of wage earners.
This proposed income tax on Gov
eminent salaries goes beyond the
fondest dreams Of the advocates of high
income tax rates. but reverseS their
approach and soaks the poor man. The
Federal income tax allows an exemp-
ton, under the new revenue bill. Of
$4,000 for married persons and 81 900
for single persons, and proposes to tax
the first $4,000 of net income only 2
per cent, the next $4,000 at per cent
and the next $4,000 at per cent
The special income tax" proposed
for Federal workers allows an exemp-
ton of 81 900 on all incomes, but i'm
mediately applies rate of IL per cent
on the gross income above that figure.
Any such rate under ordinary circum-
stances and placed in an orthodox
revenue raising bill would be chal-
lenged as conflscatory. Certainly it
would be condemned for soaking the
poor man beyond any reasonable as
sumption of his ability to pay.
But there is a simple explanation of
why the proponents of this plan must
at the very outset begin by soaking the
poor man, and that explanation is that
the overwhelming majority Of Govern
ment employees come within that rela-
tive classification. To make any show
ing Of saving to the Government, the
advocates of Federal pay slashing must
center their attention on the vast army
OF wage earners in the Government
service whose modest salaries range
down from 81, 500 salary group that,
in other discussions, is given the ben
eft Of the reasoning that the burden
OF making up the Federal deficit should
be graded in weight according to abil-
ity to pay.
The total savings to be effected by
this proposal, or, putting 1t another
way, the total revenue accruing to the
Federal Government by the imposition
Of this special income tax on Federal
wage earners, would be q possible
$4,000, oo0-which is just a little more
than half the amount carried in the
sl20 100000 bill recently passed by the
House for advancing to the States
money to build highways, the advances
to be repaid to the Federal Govern
ment over period of years by future
reduction in the amount that normally
would be paid to the States under
the highway aid acts. The $67,-
600, 900 saved" by the Government
under this latest salary slashing pro-
posal Is to be considered in its
relation to the estimated deficit of
more than $4,000, 900, 900. And most
important Of all. it is to be considered
In its relation to human welfare. The
blow of such a drastic levy upon the
small incomes of Government workers
would not fall upon these workers
alone. 1t is true that the money thus
conflscated for budget-balancing would
be paid by the Federal workers. But a
greater amount would be taken from
the small wages of working men and
women whose employers were willing
enthusiastically TO follow in the train
Of the salary-slashing Federal Govern
ment.