Evening star., 1932-06-26
TAXPAYERS REIGN
BY INDIANA PLAN
$7,OO0,000 Saving by Econ
mics Through New Laws
Stir u. S. Interest.
nneoial Dispatch to The Star.

Special Dispatch to The Star.
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind, June 25
(NANA1.-In these DAYS, when taxes
throughout the country have increased
50 that people feel they scarcely can
carry the burden. many persons are
writing to the authorities in this capital
city and asking: What is your Indiana
plan of controlling taxes, that we hear
so much about?"
Such letters come from all parts OF
the country. Harry MieSse, founder
and secretary of the Indiana Taxpayers
association, who probably knows more
about taxes and tax problems in Indiana
than any other man, said:
1T is true that this year the tax
payers in Indiana will pay $7,000,oOO
less than last year. This amounts TO
reduction of S2.l0 for every man, woman
and child, or $840 for each family OF
four. This year Sc of % counties will
pay less taxes than they did last year,
and Ga counties will pay less than they
did nine years ago.
The Indiana plan has saved the tax
PAYERS in this State, in the last nine
years, 800 100000 tax eaters had al
ready planned to have them pay, and
there is no way of telling how many
more times that 500, 10000 the tax
payers would have paid had it not been
for this plan standing in the way Of
tax-eating CRAFTS of various kinds"
Control by Taxpayers.
Briefly, the two big features Of the
Indiana plan are:
!. A law that gives the taxpayers the
control of budgets, levies. bond issues
ana contracts let for public works.
n 1No,~y all tF.rr
political Taxpayers Association, which
has branches in nearly every county
and which acts constantly in the inter-
ests Of taxpayers, to prevent extravagant
tax schemes by cutting of waste and
putting in economies.
A system of giving taxpayers the right
20 confer with the taxing officials in
their budget making, tax levying and
the layout Of public works and let
ting of contracts is an efficient means
of keeping taxes within bounds.
1t puts on the taxpayers the duty Of
appealing from proposed budgets, levies
or bond issues whenever they believe
the proposed expenditures are wasteful.
Tt puts on taxing officials the duty of
proving that the outlays are wise and
necessary. It acts as check on every
taxing official, because he knows that
IL IlC dbJCA1Pbc W R0h NhCA GOAAAG A&N4AA
of taxation graft, some one in the com
munity is sure TO detect 1t and expose
1t to q public hearing through an
appeal
The other most beneficial and efficient
feature of the Indiana plan," the IN
diana Taxpayers Association, was in
corporated with this as its chief object
ITO aid, encourage and promote the
reduction of public expenses and taxes
ir the State of Indiana, and in counties,
cities and other political subdivisions
thereof without opposing necessary and
legitimate public improvement and
without standing in the way Of an
adequate educational system"
Its first public act was to attack ex-
travagant school and city budgets plan
ned for Indianapolis. The result was
that Sl,320,000 was cut out Of the two
budgets.
we go into a county" said Mr..
Miesse, "call together taxpayers, explain
the workings Of the association and
say: This is not another scheme to
make a Job for some one. We are not
here to collect money from you 1t will
take some money to operate a branch
in your county and what money you
contribute will be used for that purpose,
for your own benefit"
our ASSOCIATION would nave been
powerless to do more than distribute
propaganda had there not been a State
law that carried teeth. This provides
that every public official spending public
funds shall budget his proposed ex-
penditures for the following fiscal year.
1t is upon these proposals that the tax
1evies are fixed. Here the taxpayers
have chance to study the budgets and
to appeal from extravaganza.
In the operation of the schools there
were tremendous wastes. The greatest
wastes were in the building of new
schools, which was honeycombed with
graft, and the transportation of pupils,
which was largely political patronage.
There were 5000 buses and drivers
engaged in this transportation, and the
costs in the same county often varied
as much as from SIS to $50 to the
pupil year under the same conditions
and distances. In one county the cost
varied from $23 to $l00.
I'VE aroused the taxpayers to these
conditions" said Mr. Miesse. "One dis
trict paying $50 year for transporta-
tion for its pupils now gets 1t for $40.
Another that was paying $51 gets it
for $50. We got a law requiring town
ship trustees to advertise for bids for
transportation, and to give the con-
STEAMSHIPS