The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, September 7, 1916, Page 11

i.. | r | { \ 14 | } - ~ o - <« . é | A '-‘ ¥. -, + 3 Q. T H i G4 More Sources of Tax ] ORTH: DAKOTA thus far in its career as a state has neglécted one of the commonest fields' “of revenue. Although we have been a state for more than a ‘quarter of a century, as yet we have. levied virtually mo excise taxes. This is a source of large amount’ of income to nearly all of the states. ' = . There are certain kinds of property which is very difficult to Teach with: any* other sort of a ta:n We- have tapped” one or two such sources of: reyenue, the: most conspicuous of which' is the ‘two per cent- tax on the net premiums ‘collected* < fmm the “state by foreign insurance’ - ber 31, companies. For the year .ending’ Décem- ' 1914, this tax amounted to’ $139,720." In' 1915 it - amounted to $155,§73 and for ‘the current year the- _state’ has colleeted from® this ‘Source 3187,249.32. In .addition;- in 1914, the- insurance department collected $36,449° in fees, and in 1915’ $39,283™in fees, and’ to July first of the current year, $35,894. The fees will undoubtedly run $40,000- per current year, which will make an- income from this department for 1916 - of $227,000. BURDEN ADDED TO POLICY WITHOUT A REAL RETURNh Yet the possibilities of revenue from this. department are Mot exhausted. The present law provides for' an elaborate publication of insurance statements. .“While it is true that the insurance com- “panies pay the bill, yet it is quite as true . that’it is added to the burden of the policy holdef. For 1916 these companies paid’ to ' the newspapers of the state 836,969.75 This is appmxmtely one- half. of one per cent upon the premmms written in the state by companies forced to make this publication. If this were turned into the - public treasury,. the revenue. from - this source would- be < * increased for-1917 by at least $40,000. 1t is an old saying_that a dollar saved is a dollar made. For the current year the state has paid out to the volunteer fire departments of the state the sum of $27,162.11. This money goes to the treasurer of the fire department and is expended by the department as it sees fit. . Many of the departments make this, a sort; of a “joy fund” for an annual celebration. In any event, it is unbusi-- mess:like for the state to subsidize local fire companies independent of the local village or city government. It would seem as if the maintenance of a fire depart- ment is purely a local charge and should be borne by local communities. If the -, state must subsidize such -department, then by all means let it be by an appro- priation from the general fund and not by & two per cent subsidy as at pzesent. If the cost of printing the insurance - i stat_ements were diverted to the public treasury together with this joy fund, the state would have received $64,121.86. " This may not be a large amount, but a - saving of this dimension in_a half dozer directions would make considerable addi- tional revenue for legitimate -ends.. AUTOMOBILE LICENSES'}URNISH ANOTHER FIELD FOR REVENUE Secretary ‘of State Thomas Hall has . licensed - approximately forty thousany autonobiles so far this year. He hag collected, in round numbers, 8120000 After the expense of the law has been met, the remainder of thig mnxsarpportlonedtothewmmesofthu state and goes into the road fund. There are several obvious absurdities about the present motor vehicle law. For-instance, the law. requires:the owner “of every automobile to secure two-tags; - and yet requires:that he put but one on his auto. . owners pay. but ene license fee for two- - autos.: One -number is sufficient. and if two numbers :are required they shonld be attached to the machine. . . - Antomobile dealers. are not The result is that many auto - Howto Reduce GeneralBurden by Excise Levies Pointed outby Tax Commlssmner BY FRANK E. PACKARD Chmrman of the North Dakota Tax Gommxsswn ’ : The thrlfty -auto owner under the present law can make one license serve for two cars. Other fruit- ful fields for publlc revenue are neglected says Packard. is its utter want of gré.dugtionl Here is a car which when new cost but four. or five hundred- dollars and which has seen several years = service; the factory and is Jisted at $4000 £. o. b. Detroit, Michigan, and. requires exactly - the mony with: preseut day theories-of - tax- ation. THe license: fee:should be :gradu- ated from “about three dollars, as a minimum, to ten dollars as a maximum. When the party applying for the license is ‘the owner of the: car, a chauffeur’s “license should: accompany. the license. Anyoné else who! desires’ to drive'a car should: be ‘Separately ‘licensed, this both on the: score of regulation for public safety and-as a revenue measure:. The owner of a sales: agency, auto livery or a garage should pay a.license; say of twenty-five .dolars, -which would carry with it a license number and as many tags for fifty cents nplece, to cover the_ ks, sent in by O. T " Barton,. show -Leagde members at the' celebration and picnic at Barton.. To the right of the flag in theplcturelsEd.F. Wood, League. or~ . zer and speaker; next to the right is 'gm;xd ~Hamilton, “senator from thirty- . fourth district; to the right.of the big McHenry comty) next o the right g eJ:;r M of . - Deering, " pioner of agricaliure. and labor, indorsed here is- another ' car ,which ‘has just.come from yet the ..state. same - kind of- license: from the owners of the two cars.’ It is obviously unjust and out of har-; “League Members at Barton Picnic actual: cost, as he might desire for ‘his demonstration or livery cars. It seems - probable that there will be not. less than fifty thousand licenses issued ‘next year and if an average revenue of six dollars could be secured, the revenue to‘ the state would be $300,000; $200,000" of this- could. be pro- rated to the counties as at 'present, and $100,000 retained in the general fund of the state. A FOREIGN CORPORATION EXCISE TAX PROPOSED The right of any corporation not organized in this state to do’ business within the state is .clearly a matter of legislative discretion. If the legislature of this' state so wills, no corporation organized except under the laws of this state can'transact business within the state.. The right then of such corpor- aions to do business within the state is clearly a privilege and as such is taxed in practically all of the: states: except North Dakota and a few others whose . ol “There were fifteen hundred people gatheredtohstmtuthedlflerentspeak ers, tenmg the farmm of thic great state of our how to get fi:eednm and how to stick together .and help get a govern- ment that will be of the people, by the people and for the people,” writes Mr. Hnakenaw. “We meémbers of the Non-. Imuemthpnhofflxemta wxll stick -in November as-we stuck in ~the June election. . We wish the leaders of the Nonpartisan: League sueeeoa and .’we will win qumher 7. s velnc,e license law..and doing a little - reaspnable excise tax_upon the capital it has been up in the air, decidedly wabbly and liable to drop on either side - railways’in our- p!evwns legislatures well “kind, but for reasons of their own were taxation and revenue laws have not been overhauled within the memory of mam, It is interesting to note the fees paid by foreign and.domestic corporations for the biennial period ending June .30, 1914, The domestic corporations of the state psxd a tax of $24,953; filing and record- / ing fees of $2,800.20 and charter fees of $4,200.10 or a total of $29,953.30. For the same period foreign corporations paid filing and recording fees of $2,040.15; and fees for the appointment of attomeys of $660.10 or a total of 32 700.25. For the biennial period end- ing June 3Q, 1916, domestic corporations ; pald a -tax of $23,704; filing and record- ing fees- of $5,101 and charter fees of $3,294 or a total of $32,099; while foreign corporations paid a fllmg and recording fee of $2,160 and attorneys fees of $495 or a total of $2,656. - TAX FOR THIS PRIVILEGE NOW ABSURDLY SMALL As the foreign corporations transact- ~ ing business in this state are capitalized ~ at approximately a billion dollars and do business -in the state running into many, millions, - it seems absurd that this privilege should in. the past four years amount to only $5,355. In .practically every -state in the union ‘'they pay a sub- stantial - privilege fee for transacting business within the state in the nature of an excise tax graduated either upon their total capital stock or upon the busi- ness transacted within the state. The Massachusetts law, which has stood' the test of the supreme court of the United States as ' not being in restraint of interstate commerce, levies one-fiftieth of one per cent upon the total capital stock annually upon every, foreign corporation registered for trang< acting busjness within' the state. If .such a law were enacted in North Dakota, the revenue to the state treas- ury would. be in the nexghborhood of $200 000. y, the enacting of the. proper motor Judlclous paring in the insurance commis- sioner’s department and by placing a stock of foreign corporations, more than $360,000 could be-secured for the general fuond of the-state. entirely from soumes heretofore unta.xed UNIMPORTANT' Can anyone guess where the Fargo Courier-News will “light”? Since the success of the Nonpartisan ticket and the hard turning down of Governor Hanna of the .presidential line. .And what . difference ~ will it make"—SANBORN ENTERPRISE. TIME TO STOP IT The Nonpartisan Leader alleges, and the resumptxon is the Nonpartisan Leader is informed and would not dare make the allegation unless true, that, ' “It costs thirty-two dollars to ship a carload-of hogs 100 miles in North Dakota. It costs only twenty-four dollars to do it in South Dakota, only sixteen dollars and fifty cents to do it in Iowa, only twenty-eight dollars t6 do it in Nubraska and .. only twenty dollars and forty-exght cents to do it m Minneso With freight rates in this one instance two-thirds of the North Dakota rate in South Dakota—it is safe to say there is the same discrepancy all along the line —the North Dakotans appear in the role of rank suckers. We are the suckers who “pay the freight.” Ifthermlwayscanyaearloade! hogs 100 miles for $24 in South Da.kota,. the railways can be made to give the same rate in North Dakota. It depends on -ourselves. Railway rates shouid receive unusual attention at the coming session of our state legislature.’ In view of this discrimination in the ~matter of railway transpor- mxtmh:ghhmeamovementof the League character stepped into power. ‘The men who formed. the committees on: Imew ‘we were' paying tribute of this = o nhfieiweshmlddom..ltmnfet& say they were getting “fl:em” in some fona or - other-i-PARSEALL DER.