Evening star., 1936-08-23
Memher of the Associated Press.
The Fiscal Inquiry.

Judging from their records and asso-
Citations, the President has chosen four
men who are well qualified by practical
experience and study to undertake the
fiscal relations investigation upon which
he will base his recommendation to Con-
gress of the amount of the Federal con-
tribution to the maintenance of the
District. All of them, through pro-
fessional or voluntary public service.
have been brought into close contact
with matters of municipal administra-
ton, assessment, taxation and related
governmental problems which have a
bearing on the fiscal relations issue here.
The subject they are to study here,
however, Is unique. There is no COM
parable situation anywhere in the coun-
try. They are to deal with problem
created by a combination of circum-
stances that could exist nowhere out
side the Capital City. 1t is problem
that concerns not only local taxation,
but the taxation of citizens who have
no voice in the levying and spending
of their tax money. 1t concerns not
only the amount of such taxation, but
the amount equitably to be levied
against citizens whose taxpaying re-
:ources are sharply and arbitrarily lin
tied. 1t concerns not only the RESPONSE
oility of the local taxpayer. but the
Nf ha
erning Congress in meeting the financial
and other obligations of the National
Government to the American Capital
1t concerns not merely the facts. and
their portrayal through statistics chosen
:or their reliability and dependability,
but the weighing of the equities in the
search for what is fair and right.
The set-up of the committee, or COM
mission of inquiry seems designed for
3 careful study not only of the facts,
hut of the equitable considerations. Mr..
Jacobs is presumably to be in general
charge of the inquiry, particularly that
part of the study which relates to the
gathering of statistical information. Mr..
Dykstra, Mr.. Martin and Mr. McAneny
are to serve with him as advisers and
to collaborate with him in the prepara-
ton of final recommendations to the
President. This arrangement should
serve the interests Of fair and adequate
study of the whole problem The scope
Of the commissions inquiry is necessarily
broad, but the objective, as written by
Congress, is the determination of what
"is fair and equitable amount to be
paid by the United States as an annual
contribution toward the expenses of the
government of the District of Columbia"
Determination Of this national re-
sponsibility in support and maintenance
Of the National Capital necessarily in
wolves consideration of the responsibility
of the local taxpayer and how it is being
met. If the investigators should ap-
proach this angle of their inquiry by
comparison of tax burdens in Washing
ton and in other cities, great importance
attaches to the choice of an acceptable
yardstick Of measurement. The safe
course in this search for an accurate
standard would seem to lie in the choice
Of the actual figures relating to tax
burdens, impartially gathered by those
gather and to check the accuracy of the
figures. 1t is to be hoped the investi-
gators will avoid use of the so-called
adjusted" tax rates for comparative
purposes. However useful such adjusted
tax rates may be In indicating the
trends, up or down, of the tax burden
in individual cities, they are faulty and
misleading when presented as a compar-
ative index of tax burdens between
cities. One of their chief faults, in this
connection, is that the adjustment" Of
tax rates relies upon guesses and esti-
mates with the defects inherent in
guesses and estimates.
While the investigators have not met
to outline their course of procedure, the
community may derive comfort from
Presidential Secretary McIntyre's assur-
ance that as the inquiry progresses the
Commissioners and representatives Of
taxpaying citizens will be given an oppor-
tunity to appear and to present infor-
nation and suggestions. Too often in
the past, especially the recent past,
somewhat similar inquiries have assumed
the attributes Of ex parte proceedings
from which the vitality affected local
taxpayer was excluded. The opportunity
not only to appear, but to appear before
q disinterested and open-minded COM
mittee, seeking only the best and the
fairest solution of a difficult problem,
will be welcomed.