Evening star., 1937-05-02
D. c. INCOME TAX
ASDEF|C|T REMEDY
HIT BY FEDERATION
Retention of Levy on Intan-
gibIe Personal Property
Urged.
2PCT. RECEIPTS IMPOST
ON UTILITIES IS ASKED
Court Bill Proposal Opposed on
Ground People Should Vote
on Amendment.

Opposition to adoption of an income
tax for the District was registered
last night by the Federation of Citi-
zens' Associations as it brought nearer
to completion its proposed program
for meeting the deficit of S6l0O,O0O
anticipated under the pending 1888
supply bill.
1t urged retention of the present
tax on Intangible personal property,
for which an income tax was sug-
gested as substitute. declaring this
present tax has been productive and
could be made more so.
The federation called for higher
taxation on public utilities operating
In the District as a substitute for the
bill now pending before the House
District Committee 1t asked for ap-
plication of the District tax against
the tangible and Intangible properties
OF the utilities and the imposition of
q per cent levy against their gross
receipts.
Court Bill Opposed.
Dropping District affairs momen-
tarily. the federation voiced disap-
proval Of the bill to grant to the Presi-
dent the power to appoint six addi-
tional judges TO the United States
Supreme Court.
On motion by Charles L. Norris of
the Law and Legislation Committee,
1t adopted resolution submitted by
the Columbia Heights Citizens Asso-
citation holding that this drastic ac-
ton should be granted only after an
amendment to the Constitution on
which all the people will have an op-
portunlty to express their views"
This action came after two moves to
keep the controverted matter out OF
federation debate. James G.. Yaden,
former federation president, suggested
the matter was not city affair and,
therefore, not properly up for con-
sideration. President Thomas E,
Lodge, however, ruled the District had
an interest as we'll as the rest of the
country.
William NICK Clayton then moved
that the report be tabled, but that
motion was voted down. The action
then was adopted. Yaden and Henry
A. Donovan then asked to be recorded
as not voting. Henry I. Quinn, pres
ident Of the District Bar Association,
and Fred A. Emery asked to be re-
corded as voting for the committee
report.
Bus Fare Cut Asked.
In another action in what was one
OF the busiest meetings of the fedora
tion's history, the body called for re-
duction Of the fare on local bus
lines of the Capital Transit Co. from
10 cents cash to the street car token
fare. Debate centered particularly on
the Sixteenth street and the Amer
lean University Park busses
Clayton, who is chairman Of the
Public Utilities Committee, also called
on federation delegates and their con-
stituent bodies to prepare for the
forthcoming public hearings on the
fares charged by the transit company.
Action on the District tax bills
came on reports by L. A. Carruthers,
chairman of the Fiscal Relations
Committee. The federation adopted
his report on the income tax, declar-
ing this field of taxation should be
left to the Federal Government.
1T is also believed" the report
said, "the Federal Government will,
In the near future, increase income
tax rates and possibly reduce ex-'
emptions, and to impose local in
come tax will result in an overtaxa-
ton IN that particular field.
Gain in Revenue Possible.
Your committee believes the local
Government should depend largely
on property taxes, and recommends
that the intangible personal property
tax be continued. Undoubtedly, this
form OF taxation can be made much
more productive by access to the Fed
eral Government income tax returns.
The Intangible personal property tax
at the present time is a productive
source of revenue, producing more
than S2,500,000 annually, and past
experience shows that any attempt to
levy new tax as a substitute for an
old tax often results in enactment of
the new tax without repeal of the old.
We believe further that there are
other fields Of taxation, including a
sales tax on tobacco and, perhaps,
other articles, and an increase in
liquor taxes"
Harry N. Stull, vice president, pre-
cipitated an issue when he declared
he believed an income tax to be the
fairest kind of tax and protested
that a sales tax would bear heavily
on persons least able to pay it.
Jesse c. Suter of the Society of
Natives argued that the proposed in
come tax alone would raise the S.
100000 needed to balance the budget
and reminded the federation that other
taxes already were being favored He
described the dangers of double tax
alton under the income tax bill and
the exemptions Of members Of Con-
gress and some OF the high Govern
ment officials.
The public utilities tax bill now
before Congress proposes repeal of the
present gross receipts and gross earn
ings taxes which are levied in lieu
OF levies on tangible and Intangible