Evening star., 1932-05-22
CANADA'S SALES TAX
WORKS SUCCESSFULLY,
STAR POLL INDICATES

w ~
STAR POLL INDICATES
Continued From First Page.)
by the people than any other form of
taxation.
fishers was sought by The Star in view
of the proposal now advanced to i'm
pose manufacturers sales tax as part
of the -evenue-raising machinery of the
United States Government. Such tax
was included in the revenue bill re-
ported to the House by the Ways and
Means Committee of that body. SEN
ator David I. Walsh of Massachusetts,,
q member of the Senate Finance Com
mittee, has prepared an amendment to
the revenue bill now before the Senate
levying a manufacturers' :, sales tax
which he will offer as a substitute for
many Of the special and nuisance
taxes" now carried in that measure.
The manufacturers sales tax in
Canada, the replies of the publishers
show, has ranged from per cent to
per cent. 1t was enacted first in 1920
to meet war costs, and for several years
ran along on ! per cent basis. 1t
was then increased to, per cent on a
restricted list of commodities and scaled
down year by year, until in 1880 it
reached l per cent again. In 1891 It
was increased TO per. cent again. This
year it has been raised to per cent
and the list of commodities to which it
applies has been somewhat extended.
The manufacturers sales tax pro-
posed in the House Ways and Means
Committee bill was 2A per cent. SEN
ator Walsh Of Massachusetts, is pro-
posing tax~of to u per cent
j. II. Fortier, publisher of LEvene-
nent, Quebec, writing his opinion Of
the manufacturers sales tax, said:
Burden Felt Little.
Taking for granted that we cannot
escape paying taxes, I believe that the
sales tax is as equitable as any of the
taxes which can be imposed upon the
public.
THE public does not see directly the
cost Of the sales tax, as il Is paid along
and in proportion as we buy goods and
according to the amount of the pur-
chaSes.
The sales tax spreads over every one
and is carried and paid for by every
body in proportion to purchases. In
consequence, those who have more
money to spend on purchases Of goods
pay q larger share of those taxes than
the less fortunate.
THE sales tax carries less criticism
from the public at large, as it is paid
by the purchasing public without no.
ticing it very much.
"An advantage Of the sales tax is that
1t brings proportionately large revenue
to the government.
The sales tax does not apply to ex-
ported goods and it is collected on a
minimum of expense to the government;
the manufacturers and wholesalers are
acting as government agents for the
collection of those taxes, and remit d.
restly to the tax department.
Food products, with few exceptions,
are exempted from the levy of the sales
tax
''As to the popularity Of the sales
tax, we hear very little criticism from
the public, for the good reason that
it is paid by the public almost without
manufacturers do not like the sales
tax, as they are used as government
collectors for that tax, for which they
have TO remit to the Government every
30 days on the amount of sales made
during the month and oftentimes forced
to wait upon their customers for weeks
If not for months, before they can COL
lect that tax back along with Their
own accounts from their own custo-
mers."
Sales Tax Proves Effective.
The effectiveness of the manufac-
turers' sales tax in Canada Is clearly
set forth in the following telegram
which was received from George
Farouhar, editor Of the Halifax
Chronicle:
The Canadian sales tax first was
adopted as a war tax and SO accepted
without complaint. The people are ac-
customed to it. From 6 per cent ii
was gradually reduced to /. Last year
IT was raised to per cent and this
year to 6. The mass of people give
little heed to it, as it seldom comes be-
lore the public eye, being buried in the
price Of the article. The sales tax is
effective. catching everybody. During
the last fiscal year it was almost the
only tax to show an increased revenue
With higher duties customs revenue
felI 29 million. With a higher income
tax the revenue fell 10 millions. Ex-
else tax revenue fell nine million
When the sales tax was raised from
to per cent 1t doubled the revenue
rising from 21 to Al million"
The Chief Directors.
w. ]. McNair, managing director the
Hamilton Herald, Hamilton, Canada,
said
of course, no tax can be called
popular, but it can be truthfuIly said
that there is perhaps less objection Ia
the sales tax than almost any other
form of taxation.
THE reason is that 1t Is largely ex-
tracted peinlessly. because q vast ma
Jor1ty OF those paying it do not realize
that they are SO doing. 1t Is largely
charged up against the retailer, who
passes it on the the consumer in the
selling price of the product and the
buyer does not see It as Q tax. There
is very little outcry against the increase
made recently.
The chief .objectors are small manu-
facturers, who have 70 absorb 1t be-
cause Of sharp competition, and cannot
pass It On TO the consumer.
Labor objects to the sales tax be-
cause it Is borne by the consumer and
therefore a large part OF 1t collected
from the people least able to pay addi-
tional taxes"
Complaints as 10 Tax Less.
r. M. Glover, president. the Peter
borough Examiner, Peterborough. Can
ada, said:
your wire of May received, and in
connection with the sales tax operating
IN the Dominion Of Canada, would say
that, while no tax Is popular, the sales
tax is very effective and Ia accepted In
this country with the least complaint
of eny Of the taxes that have been I'm.
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