Evening star., 1937-10-09
OFFICIAL PAR[EY
CALLED TO SHAPE
D.C.TAXPROGRAM
Static Plan Lasting 7 Years
Is Goal of Special
Committee.
SEVERAL SUBSTITUTES
TO BE MADE READY
Council of Civic and Business
Leaders to Pass on Proposals
to Be Worked Out.

Initial steps to develop a permanent
tax program for the District will be
taken next week by q special COM
mittee of municipal officials. it was
announced today by Maj. Daniel j.
Donovan, auditor and budget officer
who also is chairman of the COM
mittee.
Plans for the meeting were made by
Maj. Donovan following a conference
yesterday between his committee, the
Commissioners and the recently Gre
ated Advisory Council of civic and
business leaders.
The special tax committee, in obe-
dience to the wishes of the Commits
sioners, will seek to work out a pro-
gram of taxation that will remain
static for a period of at least seven
years, and provide for the preparation
Of . definite plan Of capital improve
ments through the 1945 fiscal year.
To Fit Taxes TO Needs.
Maj. Donovan said his committee
first would determine the operating
expenses for the next seven years,
estimate the capital outlay for that
period. and then build new tax pro-
gram to meet those items.
AS soon as the committee completes
the program, it will be submitted to
the advisory council for consideration.
The council is headed by L. A. Car
ruthers. chairman of the fiscal af-
fairs committee Of the Federation of
Citizens Associations.
Finding a substitute for the present
bitterly opposed business privilege tax,
which expires at the close Of the cur
rent fiscal year, is to be one of the
major problems of the tax committee.
Indications are if this tax is scrapped
the Commissioners will recommend
some other form to raise about the
same amount of revenue it will pro-
duce.
The tax committee, however, has
been instructed to improve and per-
feet" the business privilege tax, as
we'll as frame other tax programs.
including an income tax and general
sales tax which were discarded by
Congress in the final days OF the last
session when it struggled to give the
District an emergency" tax act to
Offset an anticipated serious budget
deficit OF more than $6,000,O00
Would Submit Several Plans,
What We intend to do" said Com
missioner Hazen, lis to have four or
five tax plans ready for Congress. We
don't want to 90 through the same
situation which confronted us at the
last session. One day it was an in
come tax; the next day a sales tax.
Our tax committee often worked late
at night to get plan ready for con-
sideration of the Congressional COM
mittees. The result was Congress en-
acted a half-baked business privilege
tax
This year, however, the story will
be different. We will go before Con-
greSs with four or five perfected tax
plans. If committee asks for an
income tax We will have it. If it pro-
poses sales tax. we will have that,
too. We also will have ready an i'm
proved version of the business privi-
lege tax"
The tax committee is composed of
the same municipal officials who
framed the present emergency" tax
program which is estimated to WELD
about s9,000,0 900 in additional revenue
In addition to Maj. Donovan, it in
cludes Corporation Counsel Elwood H
Seal, Capt. Herbert c. Whitehurst
director OF highways: Richmond B
Keech. vice chairman of the Public
Utilities Commission; Fred D. Allen
tax assessor, and Chatham M. Towers
tax collector.