The Farmville herald. (Farmville, Va.) 1957-current, 1960-01-01
State Sales Tax
Commitment
Withdrawal Asked
Merchants Request
Supervisors To
Keep Open Minds

A group of IS Farmville mer-
chants will ask the Prince Edward
county board of supervisors to dis
sociate themselves as local gov
erning body from endorsement Of a
state sales tax.
The request, to be placed before
supervisors during their session
next week, will not ask outright
opposition to the proposed state
wide retail tax 1t will simply seek
to have the county board take an
uncommitted position until full de-
tails of any tax law are known.
Action originating the request
came during a Chamber of Com
merce sponsored open meeting of
merchants here Tuesday afternoon.
They had assembled to hear Stump
ter Priddy. of Richmond and a leg
islative counselor for the Virginia
Retail Merchants Association. dis
cuss proposals expected to be
placed before the forthcoming ses-
sion of the Legislature affecting
merchants.
Past Endorsement
Supervisors have in effect en-
dorSed the sales tax idea as par
ticipating members of the Virginia
League of. Counties. The League,
with a Prince Edward delegation
present endorsed the sales tax last
October at its annual meeting
E. Louis Dahl. A. ~ Fore. S. A.
Martin and u B. Morris were
named a committee to present the
request to the board Their selec-
ton was made by E. M. Pairet,
president of the Chamber of Com
merce, after motion calling for
such action was passed without
opposition. .
The merchants were meeting in
dependently, and the action does not
represent formal Chamber oppo-
Sition to a sales tax.
Priddy. speaking for the state as.
ISOLATION Of 400 retail merchants,
outlined the Association views on
the proposals TO repeal garrishment
statutes. on Sunday closing la VS.
and on the sales tax
Association Views
He said that the Association Will
seek to keep the present garnish-
ment intact. and that it will seek
legislation to put teeth into Sunday
closing laws. It's position On the
sales tax won't be taken until the
full details of the proposed tax law
are known. he added.
In tt meantime, he said, the As
ISOLATION is preparing a sales tax
law that could be presented to the
Legislature if adoption of such
tax at the January session becomes
inevitable. What we want to see is
that if we do get sales tax. Wiz
giria merchants, who will be the
tax collectors. get the best possible
law" Priddy said.
Oppose Tax
At Tuesdays meeting here. oppo-
sition to any form of sales tax was
heavily supported by the attending
merchants. However. there was
some objection to having the board
OF supervisors consider the matter
before specific details Of the pro-
posed tax law are known.
Opposition to the sales tax gener-
ally was expressed in terms of an
umde'nonstrated need for more state
revenue. Speakers also felt that
present appropriations for state de-
partments all could easily be cut to
achieve economies, and thereby
raise more funds from existing
taxes.
The Prince Edward supervisors
have endorsed the sales tax for
several years. The limited tax re-
sources available to counties, the
mounting cost of public schools and
the already heavy burden on real
estate were the circumstances lead
ing to their taking such a. position
toward the tax