Montana labor news., 1939-03-30
Union Representative
Explains 5a botage
OF Revenue Measures

to various revenue measures which,
it is said, would have been used for
the purpose Of increasing the appro-
priations used in the administration
of the State Welfare Act. The chief
discussion seems to center around
the defeat of the Gambling Bill, or
H. B. No. 327. A careful analysis
of the situation will disclose the fact
that this criticism is merely propa-
ganda to discredit liberals who were
instrumental in defeating the mea-
sure, and to cover up the shortcom-
ings of officials appointed to admin
lister the Welfare Act.
Even though the state has been
hard put to meet the serious condi-
ton confronting it since 1887, when
the Welfare Act was passed, the
crisis has been successfully met by
raising additional revenue by the
passage of the Retail Liquor Law and
the increase of electrical energy tax.
That the revenue was sufficient to
meet the demands of the past BIZ
ennium is evidenced through a state
ment in the Governors message call
ing attention to the fact that, 'for
the first time in 20 years, the general
fund was in balance for a period of
nearly 10 months"
There is little reason to believe
that the revenue for the next BIZ
ennium may be any less, or that the
budget may continue to be in hal
ance. In fact the legislature, in joint
session, was cautioned by the Gov
ernor in his message against raising
of revenue through the imposition
of additional taxes on business,
either large or small.
Further, many were led to believe
that there was more than enough
money pouring into the Golfers of
the state, as on two separate occa-
sions attempts were made to repeal
existing taxes which had in the past
brought in approximately a million
dollars. The first bill of this nature
was n to repeal the metal mines
tax. This bill had been initiated by
a vote Of the people, and was one
which was sponsored by Governor
Dixon in his campaign; and although
Governor Dixon was defeated, yhe
measure passed by an overwhelming
majority. As originally initiated, the
revenue derived was upward of
$500, 1000; but the A. c. M. Company
had taken it to a supine Supreme
Court which had allowed them to
make certain deductions, and the tax
resolved itself into a net proceeds
tax with a corresponding drop to
around 100000. The bill originally
was initiated as a gross tax and
should have been so decided by an
uncontrolled court. However, even
the sum of 100000 was too much
revenue to throw out of the window
and I was chiefly responsible for
killing the bill and saving this reve-
nue. to the state.
Again, a bill appeared which
would have taken the Scent per ton
tax off of all coal mined in the state.
The amount involved was $152, 900.
Again 1 caught the bill and caused
it to be killed, saving this amount
for the general fund.
There was introduced an electrical
energy tax which would have raised
the present tax of l per cent to 2 per
cent and would have provided an
additional amount of $780, 900. The
%reactionary Republicans assisted by
the reactionary Democrats and the
corporation lobbyists, succeeded in
killing the bill. A telephone tax
which would have brought SAT, 900
was also defeated. I introduced a
measure which would have placed
a 10-cent per ton tax on all coal
which was being mined by strip
mining methods. This tax would
have brought in around $125,000 per
year chiefly from the Northwestern
Improvement Co., a subsidiary of the
Northern Pacific Railway Company,
operating in Rosebud county and
stripping the state of one of its nat
ural resources to the extent of a
million and a quarter tons per year.
I was graciously permitted to explain
the bill and the revenue which it
would return to the state and then
a motion to strike the enacting
clause prevailed and was carried by
the same combination of reactionary
Republicans and Democrats.
After spending considerable time
and effort, I introduced a bill which
would have placed a just tax on one
of the chief tax-evading companies
operating in the state-the Natural
Gas company.
There is produced in the state of
over fifteen billion cubic
feet of natural gas, annually. About
five billion cubic feet is exported
annually upon which no tax is paid.
My measure would have reached the
producer, the carrier and the dis
tributor and would have been an
equitable and a just tax. The prob
able amount derived would have
been approximately 100000. Again
the r~eactionaries were determined
that there would be no additional
derived from the corporate
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