Montana labor news., 1938-04-07
Open FORUM
Eastern Farmer Com.
plains Of Gas Taxes

-eAC0A 4NCWOs
have been considerably interest
ed by a recent letter of ]. j. Burn
side of Fergus County, published in
the Montana Farmer anent motor
vehicle taxes and had been thinking
somewhat along the same line anent
TINS double, triple and quadruple
taxation which the motorist puts up
with until it has almost reached the
point of a racket"
For example, I must pay the tax
on my car, yet before I can be per-
mitted to drive that car on which I
have paid one tax out on the public
highway l must pay five or ten dol
lars for a license fee 1.-TWO taxes),
then before l can drive the car upon
which I have been assessed two
taxes, l must pay rs cents for a
drivers license (three taxes). To
those taxes I must add an addi-
tional 81 for poor and road taxes
(four taxes) and to that I must add
3 cents additional tax on every gal
Ion of gas which I put into the car
on which l have already paid four
different varieties of taxes, making
five brands of taxes in all, which I
must pay if I want to drive from
the ranch to town to purchase a
can of pork and beans.
To add insult to injury the drivers
license is nothing more or less than
a shakedown of the motorist Gas I
stated to the twenty-third session of
the Legislature, of which I was a
member when the first attempt was
made to pass the law. No physical
or mental qualifications are re-
CURED. The veriest ~lunatic, pro-
viding he has the necessary six bits,
can secure a license to get out on
the highway and commit mayhem
or manslaughter.
Now as to the financial aspect of
the matter. The farmer and the
motorist who covers only a small
cileage during the year with his
car is penalized by the vehicle Ii
cense for he pays more in proper
ton to his use of the roads than the
person, tourist or bus lines who
utilize the highways constantly.
Now as l said in the legislative
session of 1881, there is only one
just and equitable method to apply
for the upkeep and construction of
our highways, that is to place the
tax entirely upon the fuel used. The
license fee for plates and tax on the
car should be a nominal one (say
SD and if more money is necessary
for the upkeep and construction of
highways the gasoline tax should be
increased proportionately. This
would have the effect of placing the
greatest cost for this purpose upon
the motorist, resident or non-resi-
dent, who utilizes the highways
most.
During 1887 the five-cent gasoline
tax returned to the state the sum
of $5,423, 943.15. This sum is matched
by the federal fund at the ratio of
1855, that is for every $45 which
the state raises, the federal govern
ment puts up $55, which means that
there should have been spent on
Montana highways last year over
twelve million dollars (leaving out
of consideration altogether the funds
derived from the motor vehicle Ii
cense). While I haven't covered all
the highways in the state and freely
confess that l haven't the exact fig
ures, I doubt very much if that
amount of money was expended on
our highways or if it was that we
received the full value of it.
Now there r several methods of
bringing about the changes we
would desire. One is as follows: To
organize the motorists Of the state
for a change. Each motorist could
contribute fifty cents or a dollar per
year to a fund to fight for correction
of the inequitable motor vehicle tax
laws and this fund could be used
effectually against the powerful bus
and truck line lobby which you
would have to fight in the legisla-
tive session. A second is to pledge
your legislators to change the law
before you agree to vote for them,
and a third is for the motorist to
just simply ignore the unjust laws.
For example, we will say I have no
license on my car If I am arrested
by the patrolman, I go to court and
plead not guilty and demand a jury
trial. If I am convicted, l simply
inform the judge that he will have
to send me to Jail as l can't pay a
fine; / also inform him that / have
a family of four or five children
who are out five miles from town
and about out Of grub, and that he
will have to see that they get some.
Also that the school laws require
that these children be sent to school
and the county officials who are at
tempting to deprive me of my means
of transportation will have to make
some provision about that also.
Now if enough farmers will adopt
this latter method / want to assure
you that it will get immediate re-
suits, for about nine-tenths of our