Evening star., 1938-01-10

will be used as the basis for the Fed
eral payment. If there is q proposal
to make this sum greater next year,
this committee probably will make
an active fight against it.
II Congress decides to appropriate
less than $5,00O,000 A the Federal
payment, then We will have to come
back and readjust our tax plans"
Mr.. Hazen then explained that under
the 1899 estimates, as prepared by the
Budget Bureau, the District faced .
deficit OF S3,330,000. He added that
this was based on q Federal payment
of $4,000 900 and \ realty tax rate Of
$3.50. However. he warned the COM
mittee that should the business priv
ilege tax receipts fall below the So
OOO, 900 estimate Of last summer, this
would increase the deficit. He said
District officials now believe they will
collect no more than $2,500,000, and
perhaps 100000 less than that. The
deficit, he added, will be further in
creased by adding in the costs OF
Freedman's Hospital and the District
courts.
"The Commissioners are anticipat-
ing there will be the need for raising
about IS 100000 in new revenues" he
concluded This allows for rejection
OF the $765,000 gas tax diversion plan
Of the Budget Bureau.
Could Cover Deficit.
Significantly, Mr.. Nichols and Mr..
Dirksen. in questioning Commissioner
HaZen, brought out that with retention
Of the business privilege levy and
sl75 realty tax rate the expected rev.
enue would cover the anticipated $5,-
900 900 deficit.
A comprehensive campaign to force
all business houses to comply with the
business privilege levy was suggested by
Mr.. Nichols after Tax Assessor Allen
announced that receipts from the levy
to date amounted to only $942 500. Mr..
Allen explained. however, that the sec
ond half payment on this levy, in
March, probably would bring the re-
ceipts up to at least $2.200,000.
District officials were questioned
closely by committee members to de-
termine If business privilege returns
were being closely checked and If pros
ecution had been ordered for delin-
quents and those refusing to comply.
Available Too Late.
When Mr.. Allen said several months
would be required to complete such
work, Chairman Nichols proposed the
Use OF $500 left from a $4,000 ap-
preparation for the District tax sur
vey, for hiring extra help. This WAS
aba andoned when the point was raised
that results Of this survey would be
available too late to be useful in de-
termining the new tax bills provisions.
Corporation Counsel Seal promised
the committee that the District would
prosecute any and all delinquents, rs
we'll as those who refuse to comply
with the law, after Mr.. Nichols aues-
toned past enforcement activities. 10
V. Morgan. assistant corporation coun-
sell explained that IL cases had been
taken to court so far.
Mr.. Nichols and Mr.. Dirksen sug-
gested that perhaps some business
houses had failed to comply 30 far
because the business privilege levy
now is to expire June 80. Maybe
they figured the District would not
prosecute after the levy was aban-
doned," Mr.. Nichols suggested. Mr..
Seal promised that would not be the
case.
Mr.. Dirksen said he did not want
Congress to be put In the position Of
arbitrarily throwing the business
privilege levy on the lash heap" He
said opponents of such q tax in other
Jurisdictions would proclaim that Con-
gress had discarded it. 1T has in it
much more than merely a local ques-
tion," he added.
d. C. Third in List.
Commissioner Hazen stated that
some Of my associates were not in
agreement with him as to the proposal
to place the real estate tax rate at
$3.50. He offered figures to show that
the District stands third among a list
Of 20 large cities in the per capita real
estate assessment, and sixth as to per
capita realty taxes. These figures were
based on the old $3.50 tax rate.
Now our realty rate IS the lowest
Of the 20 cities, but the rate alone
does not mean thing" he declared.
"In nnanv i,lrisdictiOns tho rate is