Browning chief. [volume] (Browning, Mont.) 1941-1953, 1950-12-01
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PATTERSON

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Hidden Taxes
TN THE EFFORT to provide the
so billion dollars of increased tax
revenue the President has insisted
must be found, so we may pay as
re spend in our defense prepare
dons, joint committee of congress
has been holding sessions during the
congressional recess. To that COM
mittee have been offered many
suggestions for the. garnering Of
new tax revenue.
The idea is to have each in
dividual file with internal reve-
nue. the total amount of his in
come for 1856 and then for
1850, and the tax collector will
collect from each one a special
tax on the excess of 1850 over
the amount for 1915. While it
would apply to all, it would hit
hardest the wage earning work.
ers, the farmers and profess
si0nal people. An eastern
metropolitan newspaper COM
puted the result that could be
expected from such a tax, as
approximately seven billion dol
lars a year, the vast majority
Of it coming from the workers,
the farmers and professional
people.
There are two reasons why that
proposal has not been and will not
be considered by any congressional
committee: QD 1t would be a direct
tax, with no possible cover-up.
Each individual would know def
initely what he was forced to pay
to the government. (2) 1t would eff
feet very large proportion of the
voters of the nation. Members of
congress would fear opposition from
those who voted for the enactment
Of such tax law on the part of
organized labor, farm organizations
and professional people.
Congress prefers to maintain
the old fiction that taxes are
paid by the rich and by the
producing corporations, the
transpOrters and distributors of
commodities. Congress knows,
and the people know, that all
such taxes are definitely passed
along to the consumers of such
commodities, plus a bit for
onnH that a. 80 -
consumers who pay all the in
creased taxes levied against pro-
ducers, transporters and distrib-
utors. But the member of con-
gresS who votes for a tax law
that means "hidden" rather
than direct collection of taxes
can stand on a political stump
and assure his constituents that
he voted to tax the corporations,
not the people, and to some ex-
tent he still gets away with such
false statements.
If the taxes levied against the
producing corporations were not
passed along to the consumers, the
corporations would soon be out of
business, we would be out of COM
modities, and their workers would
be out of jobs.
Hidden" taxes represent a por-
ton of the price of everything we
buy. Approximately one third of the
price of each loaf of bread is taxes.
All food products, clothing,
home furnishings, fuel, light
and all services, such as laun-
dry and cleaning, carry a por-
ton Of the tax load that is, and
must be, passed along to the
public, and we, the people,
know that to be true. Only men,
beers of congress, continue to
consider the people silly fools
who do not realize that we, not
the corporations pay the taxes.
No, the John Doaks of the fac
tories whose hourly pay has dou-
bled or more during the past three
years, or the farmers who have
profited from the farm price sup
port program of the government,
or the professional people whose
charges have doubled because of in
creased costs-none of these will
have to dig up their annual earning
figures for 1945-46, and then pay
special excess earnings tax on their
1850 income.
Congress does not wish to antag-
onize such a large percentage of
voters as are represented by those
classes. Members of congress, of
both parties, prefer to continue the
indirect, the hidden" tax system.
They can see a vast difference be-
tween increased profits when earned
by a corporation, and an increased
income when earned by an individ-
ual.
If we are to pay as we 60 and as
we should, it will be the John
Doaks, the farmers, and the consum-
ers generally who will do the pay
ing, regardless of whose pocket the
tax collector digs into directly. One