Evening star., 1940-04-25

degree lOT WuCIl VI CIle economic
distress In our national life"
Indirect Taxes Mentioned.
Mr.. Cooper said that while the
gross annual income of privately
owned real estate In the United
States is about $1,000, 900, 900, the
local real estate taxes amount to
$4,5O0 100000. Later Newton C..
Farr of Chicago, president of the
National Association of Real Estate
Boards. told the conference that
real estate is taxed indirectly
through income taxation and social
security taxation. Both these taxes,
Mr.. Farr said. "add a new element
in the question of adjustment of the
tax load borne by real estate"
Real estate taxation" Mr.. Farr
said, "is primarily a problem OF
State Legislatures and municipal
governments. These are the officials
to whom we look in our own COM
munities We must work with them
in establishing new and improved
laws with respect to taxation. the
study and examination of proper
budgets for expenditures to provide
the essential public services and in
assisting officials to see that the
tax burden Is equitably shared"
Mr.. Cooper took the broad view
of the relation of present bases for
real property taxation to the general
national welfare. First he high
lighted his contention that real prop
erty taxes are too high by pointing
out that "sales prices of the first
900 sales of real estate made in Bos-
ton in 1899 averaged only 40 per
cent of the existing tax values of
the properties, which means SIM
ply this, that the owners of these
properties were paying taxes on 81
per cent Of fictitious valuation"
Galley Key Log Of jam.
Then he said:
= "The economic effects are felt by
every person in the community when
real estate tax delinquencies mount
as they have been doing In virtually
every subdivision of every State in
the Union. We must pull the key
log Of the economic jam if we want
to permit better flow OF business
by increased building.
I'VE cannot as a people afford to
see the soundest of all values, the
yardstick for all values. taxed until
1t Is no longer an asset, defaulting
to the municipality. In democracy.
real property ownership is one of
the great incentives to thrift. It is
one of the privileges accorded by our
beneflcent form of government. A
nation of home owners will do more
to keep America going American
than all the other influences COM
bined."
Offers 7-POfnt Plan.
Mr.. Cooper offered a seven-point
program for the Improvement of the
real property taxation situation:
l. Reduce the cost of government
by a prudent spending of public
money.
2. Put Government income prop
erty on the same tax basis with
private property.
3. Use tax valuations based on
earning power Of property.
4. Relieve property of tax dupli-
cations.
S. Set up in every State an inde-
pendent tax agency clothed with
authority to review and adjust tax
lnequities and to control indebted.
ness proposals.
6. Put a ceiling on real estate
taxation.
Z. Encourage, through adequate
guarantee of loanable funds. i'm
provement of existing properties,
thereby increasing tax income and
taxable values.
Some Progress Made.
Progress already is being made
on point six, a survey by the con-
ference disclosed. Nine States have
adopted an overall limitation on
the general property tax rate-In-
diana, Michigan. New Mexico, Ohio,
Oklahoma, Rhode Island, Washing
ton, Nevada and West Virginia.
James Med. Shea of Washington,
president of the National Apart
ment Owners Association, called the
sessions to order. The other speak.
ers this morning besides Mr.. Cooper
and MIR. Farr were Philip c. Hodill,
Pittsburgh, president of the National
Association of Building Owners and
Managers; Byron T. Shutz, Kansas
City, Mo-, president of the Mortgage
Bankers Association of America. and
Herbert D. Simpson, Evanston, ILL.,,
professor Of public finance, North
western University.
On this afternoons program are
Louis j. Taber, master of the Ma
tional Grange; Earl G. Smith,
president, Illinois Agricultural AS
sociation; Gov. Clarence D. Martin
OF Washington, Frank J. Murray,
president of the Taxpayers Fedora
ton, Inc. The meetings will close
tomorrow with banquet at which
Rogert Whiteford, Washington at
torney, will be toastmaster and Rep
resentative Celler, Democrat, of New
York will talk.
The conference is sponsored by the
National Association of Building
Owners and Managers, the Mortgage
Bankers Association of America,
the National Apartment Owners as
sociation, the National Grange and
the National Association of Real