Evening star., 1938-03-31
Fantastic Discrimination.


These are the salaries exempt from the
local income tax reported yesterday to
the House District Committee from the
subcommittee which wrote it.:
Salaries paid to the justices of the
Supreme Court and inferior courts
established under Article of the Con-
stitution of the United States; salaries
paid to the members of the cabinet of
the President of the United States; and
salaries paid to all elective officers of
the United States, and to the clerks and
secretaries to such elective officers when
such clerks and secretaries maintain
residence without the District of Col
umbia
Under the Constitution as interpreted
by the judges the salaries of Federal
judges could not be reduced by tax
as now proposed The same prohibition
may apply to the Presidents salary,
which, during his term of Office, cannot
under the Constitution be reduced
But the exemption of Congressman,
their clerks and secretaries and of men,
bers of the cabinet, is selfish and grossly
discriminatory and should not be per-
mitted to remain in the bill
This income tax has been adopted, it
Is said, because it is based on ability to
pay"-a sound principle. But the dis
ordinations in this >bill ridicule the
principle of ability to pay" and render
1t meaningless.
The Congressman, with a fat $4,000
salary, exempts himself and his official
family. The theory of exemption is
based on the fact that the Congress-
mans residence is outside of the District
where, incidentally, he is also exempt
from local income taxes.
But the Government clerk whose
liability to pay" is much less, and who
lives in Maryland or Arlington County,
must pay the tax; that is, unless he
happens to work for Congressman.
Then the clerk mysteriously loses his
identity as a taxpayer and becomes a
member of the select group of political
royalists' who have taken advantage of
of Columbia to make themselves immune
from tax they impose on others.
The Secretary of War, under the bill,
is exempt from that tax But the As
sistant Secretary of War is a mere tax
payer and must fork over his contribu-
tion to make Washington safe for de-
mocracy. The clerk of the Congressman
Is exempt. But the clerk of the Secre-
tary Of War is taxpayer. The Attorney
General is one of the privileged few who
enjoy, along with religious and charitable
institutions, tax exemption. But the
Solicitor General is mere taxpayer like
the rest of us.
The clerk in the Social Security Board
who may live in Maryland or Virginia
but who works in Washington must pay
the tax. But his brother who works for
the same agency and who draws his
salary from the office in Baltimore will
be exempt from taxation. Army and
Navy officers stationed in Washington
are apparently subject to the tax. But
their fellow officers stationed at Annap-
oils or Fort Myer will go scot-free.
Such examples could be multiplied
endlessly to indicate the fantastic dis
ordinations proposed under the bill,
which will add a third income tax to
Virginia and Maryland nom Government
workers. who earn their living in the
District. If the District Committee is
determined on local income tax, let
1t be fair and square income tax;
levied according to ability to pay" and
rid of the selfish and illogical exemp-
tions which the taxing authorities are
setting up for themselves and their
friends.