Kankakee Valley Post, Volume 11, Number 11, DeMotte, Jasper County, 30 January 1941 — LEGISLATIVE COMMENTS [ARTICLE]

LEGISLATIVE COMMENTS

by Howard R. Hiestand

Representative, Jasper J • Newton Co. Many serious matters have come to the attention of the Legislature during the past week, chiefly aiming these is the fact that neither the Governor, the Republican, or the Democratic parties could carry out their platform pledges and keep the state budget balanced without devising some new meai|3 of taxation which the Governor, the Republican and Democrat parties have all pledged not to do, so all concerned seems to be out on the end of the limb, so to “peak. 1 feel that a balanced budget is the i ?rst obligation of this legislature,*. The retailers should have some relief from the inaqualities of the present Gross Income Tax Law and, no doubt, this will be given first consideration after the balancing of the budget for the next two years. The two major parties should be more careful in making their platform |. ledges and to be sure first that money is available where their pledge entails more expense. I do not mean to infer that economies cannot be made in administration costs, but such savings will be more than offset by additional fixed costs. Several itema of additional expense could not be foreseen at the time the platforms were made, chiefly among these are the costs of National defense. A much too rapid expansion of building projects was authorized, undertaken and completed. Are we to let huge, new buildings stand idle for lack of fund s for maintenance? The huge budgets we face today in Indiana are a sharp warning. They represent only a drop in the bucket of what we may expect in tax in-| crease in the near future by reason <*f a similar huge expansion of government service nationally. We must carry our share of the load for Namal defense. It is our patriotic duty to do so. Few people take the time to analize or have available facts, and hastily pass judgement on the actions of our Legislature, and I feel that it is my first duty to my constituents to place before them the many complexing problems with which we are faced.