The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1939-02-09
LEGISLATIVE
~SIDELICHTS
By H. E. Sl1ennes

The committee on co-operatives
this week recommended for pas
sage bill which would REFUGE
the taxes materially on REA co-.
operatives. This bill recognizes
that co-operatiVes of this kind are
owned 100 per cent by the mem
bers who use this electric power.
They are organized and operated
on funds both from the federal
government and the state GOVERN,
Ement at a low rate of interest.
There does not seem to be any OPP
position to the bill outside the
fact that power companies / also
want to come in under this low
tax rate.
The difference between the pre-
sent tax rate which amounts to
about 81 per consumer and the.
new rate advocated by this bill of
$40 for 100 members if the mem
Der be a consumer, will decide the
future of the cooperative electric
association in this state. The rate
of $40 is admitted to amount to
almost no tax at all, being frankly
admitted to help the rural coop
eratives to get on their feet. The
bill has been recommended for
passage by the co-operatives
house committee without dis
senting vote. 1t is now being sent
to the tax committee to be acted
upon here.
OF course, the outstanding piece
of news in last weeks legislative
calendar was the easily under
standable picture of state finances
that Governor Stassen presented
to the legislature. His message des-
cribed briefly the expected mon
eys the state will receive and the.
moneys to be expended. In other
words, the governor is deterlnin-
ed to keep expenditures within
income. 1t wasn't so for the last
biennium and as a consequence
he proposed borrowing of four
and a half millions to take care
of this deficiency. ].
Another item that the state will
have to take care of by borrow
ing, for the next biennium, is
some IL millions for direct relief
and for veterans relief, making a
total of $18, 187, 500 that is to- go
into the liability column. But
despite this borrowing for these
two items the governor estimated
that through retirement of exist
ing debt during the next two years,
that states total debt will be re-
duced about nine million dollars
in the next biennium, from $I32,-
1888, 045 to $123,774,951.
The governor would save a lot
of money by economizing in all
departments stating that his own
office was setting the pace. An
other saving will be effected by
consolidation of state bureaus and
agencies and under the governors
plan the real estate levy will
remain at 10 mills for the states
share and new money would come
from iron ore taxes and an adj
ministrative charge of five per
cent from the state highway and
game and fish departments. He
also proposed to cut out the. one
mill road and bridge tax and ask.
ed to continue the four cent gaso-
line tax to- take care of this mat
ter.
The governors recommends
tons will undoubtedly be follow
ed closely by the legislature
which seemed wholly in accord
with the program.
The Twin Cities, especially, are
In a bad way as far as funds to
take care of the, relief load. May
ors of both cities urged among
other things that the Hennepin
and Ramsey counties share of
gasoline and income taxes that 90
to benefit the whole state be re-
turned to pay local relief costs