Jasper County Democrat, Volume 22, Number 1, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 2 April 1919 — TAX VOBISCUM [ARTICLE]

TAX VOBISCUM

THE GREAT REPUBLICAN ■ , BLESSIN6

The Legislature Increases Taxes All Along ths Line, and Provides That the Burden Shall Fall on Reel Estate. While there Is general agreement that the late lamented legislature was easily the worst that has met In thirty years, there Is some difference of opinion as to who Is responsible for IL Not a few put the blame on Governor Goodrich, for rousing resentment by trying to dictate as to legislation. It eannot be denied that he ignored the provisions of the Constitution creating three departments of government; providing that "no person charged with official duties under one of these departments shall exercise any of the functions of another;” and that “the legislative authority of the state shall be vested In the general assembly*, which shall consist of a Senate and a House of Representatives.” He decided in advance what legislation he would have passed, and appointed committees to prepare the bills; and he organised bls forces In the State Central Committee and the Republican press to compel the action he wanted. In addition to this unquestionable action, he Is charged with other for which he disclaims responsibility. State commissions, appointed by him and commonly believed to be controlled by him, were also busy. The Public Service Commission was on hand with several bills cutting into the power of local self-government. The State Board of Forestry brought out a voluminous bill for the conservation of Richard Lieber and the German vote. The State Tax Board came to the front with a tax law, the chief feature of which was the practical exemption of Intangibles, which the Governor has favored for some years past. His Republican enemies hoot at the suggestion that he was not personally responsible for these measures.

Time to Reap Harvest. On the other hand, the. Governor’s friends, Including the State Republican "machine” and its press accomplices, assert that the trouble was due to the unexpected landslide In the elections, which brought into the legislature a lot of men who were never expected to be ejected, and also created the feeling among Republican officials that this was their time to harvest the financial spoils of victory. That these conditions existed is very evident; but there are Innocent bystanders who hold that the Governor was largely responsible for the "grab game” on account of his open effort to build up a political machine by absorbing all the appointing power In the state, which he claimed had been Indorsed In the election. At any rate his example was contagious. In addition to the bills centralizing the appointing power, in his hands, his "visiting committee” had ■recommended giving him >I,BOO for house rent; had recommended putting >250,000 hi his hands as an "emerg'ency state institution fund” to be expended as he saw fit, Instead of being given direct to the institutions that needed it; and had recommended giving him >193,000 more for “repairs to the State Capitol," for which >132,000 had been appropriated in 1917, and >155,000 had been expended, in addition to contracting for much more that there was no money to pay for. State Employes Get Theirs. All other officers proceeded on the theory of "ask and ye shall receive." The Supreme Court judges demanded that their salaries be raised from >6,000 to >IO,OOO, on account of the "high cost of living"; and the Appellate judges offered to struggle along with >B,OOO. The State Tax Commissioners put a raise of their salaries from >3,000 to >6.000 In their reform tax law. An Increase of >1,500 a year was asked for circuit judges throughout the state, with >6OO a year for traveling expenses, and the right to appoint bailiffs at >135 per month. Senate bill 188 provided for >25 a day for “special judges” instead of >5 and expenses now allowed by law. Prosecutors In counties of less than 71,000 wanted >3,500 a year, Instead of >SOO and fees. The legislators did not forget themselves, and bills were presented In both houses increasing their [per diem from >6 to >lO, with mileage of >5 for every 25 miles of travel !ta going and coming. ! State employes demanded a law

giving them pensions of 25 per cent of their salaries The Fire Marshall wanted more assistants and salary Increases. A Department of State Police with an indefinite pay roll was proposed. The lx>ng Hospital modestly asked for a “psyoopathlc department,** with >190,000 for a building and >75,000 for maintenance. Only >60.000 was asked for a new normal school; but a "Rural School Commission” was urged to make a “survey” of school conditions, at >5,000, al 1 though the State Board of Education Is supposed to furnish all such information. Call was made for a "State Board of Electrical Crane Inspectors,” with three members at >2,000 per. Senator English wanted >25,000 to buy ground for a negro Industrial school. For a "Live Stock Sanitary Board” >35.000 was asked; and the Lieber Department of Conservation asked for >60,000 a year, of which >4,000 goes to the "Director,” with as many assistants and at such salaries as the commission sees fit to provide. The "State Moving Picture Board” was to have a chairman at >2,500, and two standing members at >2,000, with a total appropriation of >30,000. The State Board of Pardons called for a clerk, with salary to be fixed by them. A "State Motor Vehicle Commissioner” was asked, fit >3,600. The "State Employment Commission" wanted >75,000.

County officers were right up with the procession, led by the officials of Marlon, St. Joseph and Lake counties. While most of the demands of this class were for individual beneficiaries, It was proposed to put all county commissioners on salaries, ranging, In ten classes, from >3OO to >3.600, and also to make county commissioners road supervisors In their own road districts, at >3 per day additional, and 20 cents per mile mileage. County Superintendents wanted an Increase of salaries, and also to be allowed to charge livery for the use of their own vehicles, and to have an assistant at >3 per day. The county surveyors asked an Increase of salaries, and In counties of over 240,000 wanted to appoint a “rodman, flagman, chairman and stenographer” at >3 per day each, and an "assistant engineer" at >5. The pay of "road workers,’ whose work has been a standing joke for yean, was Increased from >2 to >3.60 per day; and teams from >3.50 to >5. Court reporters made a strong effort for salaries of >I,BOO. County council men asked for per diems of from >5 to >2O, and members of township boards for >lO per meeting. Old Claims Revived. Old snags, that have been turned down heretofore, like the sale of the Marion county court house, and the Hord claim for >60,000, were revived and presented, the latter being passed by the Senate. But the most popular grafts t were “high cost of living” stunts. It was demanded that all illegal allowances during the war be legalized and future rates be put on a war basis. The most bare-faced of these was the call for 60 cents a day for boarding prisoners In jails, which the virtuous State Board of Accounts had authorized In writing, although the law limits the charge to 40 cents. This steal has been worked in the face of the fact that board at the women’s prison has cost less than 15 cents a day all through the war; and the prisoners there are better fed than in any jail in Indiana. To make It worse, Republican judges In Marion county have persistently sent women to the jail who, under the law should have gone to the woman’s prison, saddling 45 cents a day of unnecessary expense on the taxpayers, for the benefit of a Republican sheriff. Attention was called to this during the last campaign, but the Indianapolis News and Star suppressed it, and this scandalous defiance of the correctional laws of the state is still going on. The State Board of Charities and Corrections is apparently as completely cowed by Goodrich schrecklichkeit as the State Board of Accounts. Sheriffs Want Graft. Another proposed sheriff’s graft was on mileage; House bill 286, providing for 3 cents a mile for the first 500 miles, and 2 cents a mile thereafter, "in excess of railroad fare," and 1 cent excess for a prisoner, transporting prisoners. Of course the camp followers of the Republican of- ( flclal army were not forgotten. The newspapers were tendered an increase from 5 to 8 cents a line for legal advertising. Free school books were proposed, and dealers In school books were to be allowed 20 per cent 1 over cost for handling school books. "Relief of contractors” touched- many a tender legislative heart, and there were several bills to allow them increased compensation on account of. war prices, without regard to war prices being In effect when the contracts were made. It will be pleaded that not all of these proposals were adopted. Of

course not, but plenty were to say with Mercutio, as to his wound: •* Tin not so deep as a well, nor so wide as a church door, but *tls enough; ’twill serve.’’ Enough were adopted to make a heavy false of taxes all along the lino, for it was not only state taxation that was Increased, but also local taxation In dozens of forms. Notwithstanding the burden of war taxes that still rest on the public, and must do so for some years, new and special taxes were imposed; old rates were increased; assessment valuation was put to 100 per cent, and it was even attempted to legalize the violation of the constitutional debt limit. And in all of this there was no consistency. As to objects, It may be noted that while >2S,uVO was appropriated for a monument to Charles W. Fairbanks, it was proposed to give >3.500 for a memorial to our fallen soldiers In the late war. While there was great solicitude about limiting the taxes on Intangibles by their "reasonable in-come-producing value.” the tax'’on dogs, which produce no income, and a majority of which have a market value of less than >2, was made >3 to >6. Democratic Minority Only Stop. What is more, the chief restraining Influence was the Democratic minority. It is well known that the proGerman sentiment was so strong with the Republican machine that no real prohibition of German teaching would have been made but for the Democrats standing by their platform pledge against It. It is also under stood that the "throwdown’’ of the prohibitionists was a sop to the Ger mans for their “throwdown” on the teaching proposition; relying on the theory that Shumaker and rianly, the “dry” leaders, are such hide-bound Republicans that they will stand for anything that is handed to them. Moreover, nobody knows what has got through the mill, nor will know for several months. From the first, the old legislative trick of holding back action on bills to farce compromises was resorted to, to an extent never before known; with the result that the last days of the session were reached with practically nothing done. Then bills were rushed through without consideration, and that is whore legislative tricksters get in their work. It will not be safe for anyone to believe it is not as bad as it might have been, until the last county is heard from. In the Senate, bills were put on passage, without reading, In bunches of a dozen at a time, and all voted on at once, in direct violation of Sec. 18. Art. 4 of the state Constitution.

Reform Tax Bill Jonah. The Republican newspapers have already begun congratulating the public on the passage of the “reform tax law,” but in reality there is no reform in It. The general complaint of the old law was that intangibles escaped taxation under it, by being concealed. After a desperate effort to provide for their taxation at a merely nominal rate, the interests that own them shrewdly made a compromise that leaves them just where they were. The provisions for making them noncollectible in the courts if not entered tor taxation, and for the employment of tax ferrets, were dropped at the last hour, and the people who have been sequestering their money, stocks and bonds can go ahead just as they have been doing. The intangibles that got on to the tax duplicate were valued higher than any other kind of property, but the trouble was that they belonged to widows and orphans, and to people who were not "smooth" enough to conceal them. It is easy to see what will be the result of this law. The total taxables of the state in 1917 were >2,199,523,803, of which >1,380,165,875 was real estate, >137,000,000 tangible personal property, >350,000,000 intangibles, and >280,000,000 railroad and other corporation property. By the report of the tax commission, which agrees with other authorities, real estate is now assessed on the average at less than 40 per cent of true value; tangible personalty at 50 per cent, and Intangibles at 77 «per cent. If they are all Increased to 100 per cent, the increase on real estate will be $2,070,248,812; on tangible personalty :t will be >137,000,000; on Intangibles it will be >105,000; and on corporations about >300,000,000. In other words, the Increase on real estate will be nearly four times as much as on all other property combined. In theory there is to be a large amount of intangibles put on the duplicate, that are not taxed at all at present, but as "the teeth”-have all been pulled from the new law, there is not much probability that the intangibles will be brought out. In other words, instead of being 63 per cent of the total taxables, as it is now, real estate will tnake 72 per cent of the total. This is the great Republican “reform."