The Daily Alaska empire. [volume] (Juneau, Alaska) 1926-1964, 1937-12-13
Three-Way Boost
cleveland Plain Dealer

cleveland Plain Dealer)
Three developments at Washington in the first
two days of the week bear some promise of results
favorable to an improvement of the national fiscal
situation They look toward ending the present BUSH
ness recession and beated balancing of the budget
The first was President Roosevelts message to
Congress- suggesting program to encourage activity
in the construction field The second was Senator
Harrisons radio address tax revision. The third
was the presidents second message urging sharp
curtaiment in federal expenditures for highways.
Though the three communications are directed
to the same general purpose they approach the prob
lem from different angles. In his first message the
president seeks to encourage flow of private capital
into the home building industry, the plan involving
AN agreement by investors to accept lower interest
than prevail and by workers to accept lower
wage rates per hour in the hope of increasing their
annual income
His second message recommends action by Con-
greSs in the present session to spread federal highway
obligations already incurred 1889 and 194o can
collation. of the 1889 federal aid to the states and the
limitation of such aid to not more than SIPS 900
year beginning in 1910. 1t may be anticipated that
vigorous protests will come from some of the states
against this curtailment.
Most promising of the three so far as checking
recoverys present setback is concerned is the Mis-
sissppi senator's address by radio Our Tax Prob
lems Two facts contribute to its Importance; first
that Mr. Harrison is chairman of the Senate finance
committee and second, that he is strong partisan
OF the New Deal and would not be likely 10 make Sucn
a speech without White House sanction
Senator Harrison helped put through Congress
both the act which taxes undistributed corporation
SURPRISES and that which taxes capital gains He is
now frank to admit that this legislation has not
brought the results then anticipated.
Concerning the first the senator observes:
1T is harsh and unwise policy for the govern
ment to compel a corporation that may be giving
ployment to hundreds of thousands of and women
to declare its earnings in the form of dividends to its
stockholders when needs such earnings to perpetu
ate the employment of those people,
Concerning the second, Mr.. Harrison says:
I'm my opinion factor has been more influ-
entail in dscouraging trade in stocks securities
property holdings than high surtax structure and
the very stringent tax capital gains
Changes in tax legislation covering these two
points will in the senator's opinion, encourage bust
increase government receipts and offer greater
hope to the unemployed
The country welcomes the chairman of the SEN
ate finance committee to the growing ranks of those
who in the existing federal tax structure dis
couragements to legitimate business which are as
perilous to full recovery they unfair to those
who pay the evies No purpose is served by retaining
these restrictive tax provisions In the net they pro-
badly contribute nothing to They discourage
business activity and thus threaten employment
If there doubt before that Congress would
soon revise repeal these provisions of law it should
be dissipated by Senator Harrison's statement