Evening star., 1932-07-02
many BUSINESSES
MUST PAY LICENSE
| UNDER GIBSON LAW
Entire Revenue Structure of
District Changed Under
Terms of Legislation.
TARIFF is REGULATED
BY INSPECTION COST
Old Licenses Good Until October
80 in Case of
Increases.

Many businesses heretofore not sub
! ject to license fees must take out
| licenses this month under the terms of
| the act signed by President Hoover yes
| terday changing the entire license
| structure of the District.
In some cases the fees for licenses
| are raised and in others a different
system of assessing the fees adopted.
| In a great many cases. however, busi-
neSSeS which have not been required to
| take out any licenses at all are now
compelled to pay fees. in some cases
quite heavy. proportioned to the ex-
pense of regulating or inspecting the
| businesses in question.
| Where the license fees have simply
been raised the old licenses will remain
| good until October 81. The new fee will
not start until November l in those
! cases. Where new business is brought
under the law the license must be OBJ
| tanned Immediately and will be good
until October 81 only when it must be
renewed.
| New Businesses Regulated.
| Among new businesses regulated are
barber and beauty shops, SIS a year
public baths, IS year; moving picture
| storage, SOS year; pyroxylin storage.
| SIS year; abitoirs or slaughter houses,
500 year; dry cleaning establish
/ ments, SIS year: manufacturing and
renovating mattresses, $75 a year;
storing or selling mattresses, SO year;
| slot weighing machines or vending ma
| chimes, 81 a year; bakeries or bottling
I establishments, grocery stores, ice cream
| factories and meat shops, SIS a year;
| delicatesSens, SIS year; wholesale fish
dealers, $50 year; owners or managers
| OF apartment houses, SIS a year; lodg-
ing houses where 10 or more transients
are accommodated, SIS a year; busses
| operating over regular routes eight
| tenths OF cent per vehicle mile within
| the District.
The license fee for sightseeing vehi-
cles is raised to $100 a year. This used
to range from Sc to $12, depending on
the size of the vehicle.
The license for the proprietor of a
taxicab is raised from SO to $25. and
that for an Identification card for a
taxi driver from ST to IS.
Street Vendors Hit.
| The taxi proprietors' license must be
taken out in July and runs to June 30
next year. This is the only type of
license which does not run from No
vember to November.
charged for owners of vehicles used in
! hauling goods for hire and of SIS a year
, for livery stables and for establishments
! where motor vehicles are washed.
| cleaned or repaired for, profit.
| A section Of the bill puts A S12 an
| nual license fee on all street vendors
| except those Of newspapers. This ap-
| plies to vendors of toys, ice cream or
any other commodity sold at large and
| not from fixed location upon the
| public streets" These vendors must
| obtain and display a badge indicating
| the fact that they are licensed.
| Another new section puts a S5 license
upon solicitors who sell at retail. Solici-
tors must also post $500 bond
Measure Abolishes Bond.
Dealers in dangerous or deadly weap-
onS must pay license tax of $50 a
| year. Previously they gave a 81 900
| bond and their license was a perpetual
affair. Under the new law it must be
| renewed every year.
A $100 license fee is provided for pri-
vate detective agencies and the fee for
| employment agencies is raised from S25
! to 500.
The Gibson license bill was written
in January, 1929, by a special commit
tee OF District and Federal Government
| officials composed of Ringgold Hart,
former principal assistant corporation
counsel; Wade H. Coombs, superin-
tendent of licenses, and D. P. Evans of
| the United States Bureau of Efficiency.
Though designed primarily to remove
| antlquated provisions and inequities in
the original law the new act will afford
greater protection to the public by Civ
ing the Commissioners and the police
department increased authority to
regulate and control those businesses
! that nave long escaped close municipal
supervision. The act also will add
nearly 100000 a year to the revenues
of the District, although it WAS not
framed as a revenue producing measure.