Evening star., 1936-04-25
TAX BILL To. GET
SENATORIAL TWIST
Rewriting Expected on Data
That Can't Be Hastily
Digested.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

Everybody who has realistic atti-
tude toward the present plight Of the
Federal Government in running huge
deficits will agree that some kind of
. tax bill is essential. What the
House Of Representatives has before
it Is an unworkable measure which
will be passed nevertheless with almost
all of the 435 members of the House
well aware that the bill will be re-
written in the Senate.
On its face this might appear to
be confession that there is some
sort of wisdom or intelligence in the
Senate superior to that in the House
and that when bigger and better tax
bills are TO be written the Senate
will always write them.
But the criticism is unjust. There
Is just as much intelligence in one
part Of Congress as in another and,
non-partisanly speaking. there is just
as much real wisdom on matters Of
taxation on one side Of the political
aisle as on the other-which perhaps
isn't saying much, for the present
Federal tax system is a hodge-podge
of wastefulness and inequitable rates.
1886 Strategy Involved.
The Senate is going to write the
new tax bill for reason that Is i'm
portant to record-because it has to
do with tactics and strategy in a
campaign year. For reasons best
known to the New Deal, hearings were
held before any draft of the bill was
made public. This means that any
body who was affected by the pro-
posed reform" of our taxation sys-
tenn had to testify on theoretical
proposition. Today, as the bill is
available to the public, the flaws in
it are apparent to those who are
familiar with tax problems. But will
they have a chance to get the bill
amended? Hardly. The measure is
open to amendment but the orders
from the administration are to jam
1t through and hurry the bill over
to the Senate.
NcdllWIllcp Tile WILL DC
studying the draft of the bill. Sug-
gestions and criticisms will be forth
coming from all persons and corpora
tions affected. The Senate Finance
Committee will be obliged not only
to hold hearings but to consider a
mass Of written memoranda 1t Is a
safe prediction that all the material
cannot be digested by the Senate
committee in 80 days or considered
fairly by the Senate in less than six
months.
Consideration Needed.
But Congress is anxious to adjourn
In time for the political conventions
and for the campaign. The business
interests of the Nation usually want
Congress to adjourn as quickly as
possible. This year, however. their
feeling ought to be just the reverse.
For an ill-considered, unworkable tax
bill may retard the progress of the
country toward recovery. II ever a
piece Of legislation needed time for
consideration, it is the proposed meas
ure, which Is completely to revolu-
tionize the tax system of the United
States.
From an economic standpoint, it
would be better to spend six months
in working out new tax bill than
to do the job in haste. And the more
the tax bill is studied, the less en-
thusiastic will be the proponents of
a tax on undistributed earnings In
principle there is much to be said for
this form of tax but administratively
speaking, it probably will present so
many obstacles as to run up the ex-
pense Of administering it far beyond
any present records Of cost.
One reading of the tax bill shows
that the Bureau Of Internal Revenue
will have to undergo considerable ex-
pansion. This will please the bureau
Gratis. Tax lawyers and experts will
be in demand. The layman can
hardly understand the bill as written
by the House committee and when it
comes to making out a tax return,
the trouble only begins. Take the
case of debt-ridden corporation. 1t
will have to bring its books with all
evidences of Indebtedness and go
through much red tape-lots of it ab-
solutely necessary-in order to reach
an understanding with the Govern
ment on what is the proper amount
Of tax.
(Copyright, 1850