The Clinton chronicle. (Clinton, S.C.) 1901-current, July 13, 1933, Image 2
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THE CLINTON CIIRONICLEi CLINTON. S. C.
a
AY, .TULY 13,
IS THE
!Lj^ ^ ^ ^ adopted the sales Ux as a means of: that the average family consists of.wo'uJdhe different if all states adopt-[people who'are on the bottom rung
pa* pp 1* A V TlLff\ D/\I f/^VO additional nece.ssai*y! five or more, it would seem from thisjed thg, .sales tax law. But why fool|the economic ladder, ^
NAUJ,N I ax r revenue. The amount needed was $2,-{figure that the percentage of property j ourselves ? All states will not adopt! There has been an ad valorem tax
^ 1000,000. The sales tax was estimated | taxpayers is surprisingly high. ,such a sysem. With border states free j decrease in Mississippi since the ad-
From the June Issue of The Rotarian Maj^ine this amount for the full year. ; Printed reports of >thi >rississippi ,fiom this commercial handicap, home! vent of the sales tax. However, in
On the basis of an ad valorem assess-!Tax Commission indicate that thcT*iv-:merchant^ are penalized. Particularly fairness to the advocates of the retail
^ *»■ upp ^ ^
YES—
By A. H. STONE
Cliairinan. Mississippi Tax Com
mission
\ ment of $500,000,000, an additional ei age monthly- per capita tax collect-1 is this true in .border counties, and sales Ux, it .should be definitely point-
<‘our mills would have been ed last year wa* ,only 0.7 cents. Yet,; thirty.four of .Mi.ssissippi’s eighty-two [ed &ut that afl increase in ad valorem
ihil- necessary, to produce the .same amount it is freely admitted that property counties are on the border. ‘ would likely have otherwiise been es-
kely have otherwiise been jes-
Incidentally, we should not confu.-fe! ^^^e to the sudden and drastic
Revenues collected in Missi.ssip-
pi by grocer, baker, and candle
stick maker are keeping books
black without raising the regular
le\T-
right here my own position in the mat
ter. 1 have no legislative responsibil
ity whatever in the premi.ses. My duty^of revenue derived from the present.!taxe-< are high; and MtsJtissippi’s two'
IS to take s^h tax laws a.s the legis,. sales Ux. This would have meant an imillion people paid four niillions inig federal sales Ux with a retail ^.ales' ^e^iu^^tion in property assessments.
lntru« *‘7'' f ''“'nT "'’i'"!t**- » fx- government »ere The United States is in a mood to
entrust to my administration and ex- „f four mils, or a twelve mill levy in- rs only Id 2-.i cents averaye monthly t„ ^ ^ale.s tax, it would be col-Icnn.sider anv tax panacea. But the
eet,tethen.torteb.,tofmy.b,lity Ustead of eiBht. In other words the |,e, capita. Alltax burdens reduced to lected directly from the manufactuler;'.states of this nation will do well to
C i'i-t a^7^Do»?bilitv of advisinli' I’" capita basis seem comparatively f,„„, (he tire maker, for example, and leonsi.ler the un.soundne».s of the retail
the ie^slatlvrbZch « to the "o ' T. ■‘'a' .'noonsequential, f,„„, ten thousand retail tire deal-..sales tax policy. Founded on fallacy;
suits of the onemtion of such laws unncce.s.sary of .»0 pel cent. grievous objection to the retail erj,. It Would be a differe.-it silua:ion unneeded, except possibly as an emer-
, suits of the operation of such laws. It ad valorem increase. .ales ta^ is that it is not equitable, entirely
IS. then-fore, a matter of very vital I j ^
it
gency; unequitable to merchants and
Personally, . I would . \ Tu® capacity of an. ^viail order houses are indi.snutably'customers alike; uneconomical to ad-
above m the affirmative, hurther- recommendations and wisest of ^ Anu-ncan|individual to spend. In reality it levies,a retail sales U.v. All out-, minister, con.sidering the amy of un-
more. I would be inclined to let tlv- , , nc-
matter drop with that answer. 1 srV - predicateil on
this becausi 1 am by nature land liaiii-^ mdu-sions which are sound,
iag opposed to argumentaUve or con-[ J expix-s.^ my conviction as to this
troversial di.scussions. I realize, how- the matter in the report on
•ver, that the public i.s not willing to <1* to which I have .alrcaily
ausd should not
mere- ipse di
question. I am
the following by
be
ccon^unij^spccializ.ng in the field of'a 100 per cbnt a.sses-<ment on the merchants can offer a di-s-'paid and harrassed merchant-collect-
4
■N
<»n. Thi.s was my old friend Dr.; small-wage earner Hie smaller eijuivalent to the sales tax|ors; inadequately productive in view
Thomas S. .A.dam.s of "Vale -‘‘Tommy”!income.of an individual, the larger is i(.},^,.jy(,,^ within the state. A di.scount|Of the small pWcentage of the state’s
.\dams, now of ble.ssed memory. Dr., the percentage of iii.s income that goes ’ jj, ^ uj^les advantage. I^rge operators total revenue returned, the retail sales
Adams looked over what wu w’ere do-1 into tax channel-. It is a “soak th" , would w’elcome a shifting of the tax ^ lax is just another tax burden, psy-
commercially
just.
coF>clusion. I^‘t me state at orice that ^ •**late, ignoran^ ceases to be merej j yp^itured the suggestion that ifjtom. The retail .-yiles tax is a direct
I am neithei a piopagandist nor an i'acuity m a Kgins assume certain tax proved workable un-' tax which pyramids the cost which
pologist for the sales tax or for any the sinister aspect of a social crime, conditions to which it was ap-
bot- capiria.XatTWr. Talk about tax dodgers!
The retail sales tax }>oints the way..
I'unhermore, if a tariff-is a protec-'
r j ^ _ _ _ , I , ^''*”1 til* Cvllvlltit/Jlo tv/ V4ll4V.ll Al WeVO
other foim. of taxatirm. if do not like, There can be no effective solution of! pii^.i, was not discriminatory, was rea-
’axe.s of a:'\ kind. 1 simply accept any human
'hem a- 1 aw opt the radio, telephone,. ProundisJ in a thonrugh comprehen-
the ultimate consumer must pay. Itition to busines.s, then, most assuredly]
bi oadons the ba.se, so to speak, and j ami undeniably, a retail sales t«.\ is;
pro em w ic sonabJy acceptable to those who paid' jncivases the cost of living of those I the reverse.*^
a>romo!.!^-. : n i various other conco-1 sion of its basic f^ts. This is Partic-, revenue, .such tax should be
it, and accomplished its purpose in! least able to stand it. Individuals with
is another serious objec-
(Continued from page one)
eration of his industrial recovery pro-
jn'.lai t.*: of C'Vdization.
1 have In. paiticiilar
uiarly true of problems of Uxation. In regardless of theo-
tecbnic.al,tbe discharge of the duUea of^his of- arguments against it. Dr. Ad-
knowledge n hich would (lualify.me in-j fice. I regard it m one of the chief agreed without re.servation to my
Udlrgently u. -Die ttiaUciL of|«f my “'i;! .suggestion. Neither he nor I thereby
the soundness of, a retail sales tax., d^ emulate such ‘n^>rmation as vvm!
With me the propo ition is j.urely em- aid in shaping sound conclusions ‘nL^iformly under all condition.^ and in
The retail sales tux^fansnTh that Ttli-dbm, or ft pair of sodci*? There4s-a^l^**^*
rrric.il. Such informaiion as 1 possess, the public mind.” j p]j,pe, jh,. common sense of the
-on the suoji ct, aside from the reading SiM'aking, therefore, not as an ad-j the sales tax may be
. , i . . "stogrf by Johnson to be fast appi*oach-
is not economical to collect. .Now it ishnoral liability to good government in agreements which will be present
highly prohabk* that proponents ofthis situation. It is psychologically
which is M'ailahle to everybody, 11 vocate or a .special pleader or a propa-
the retail sales tax will immediately-bad. In.stead of being a painless tax.
have acquiied thiough. twelve months ^ jjandist, nor as one having something ^j^^jppj^^j,,,re it ha.s proven workable!
w.th the so-called sales tax
is-ippi, tlie administrat
* xjK'riem-
• aw i)f .V.
>f vskii-ii h;», d<‘\olved upon me in
rijiacity as cliairrnan of the State Tax that the .sales tax has not driven busi-i
r'O'mi-sion. , Incss from Mi.sai»sippi, save possibly’
I, IS., the voids “so-called sales tax only in rare instances, and not then
•aw” adviMMfiy. I he .Mississippi*act of in any appreciable volume.
t:M‘^ mu»osi-,> a tax on gross-inline, cgncliision is JvasiHl upon data I
' r tV* f7>7i'7M.f anmial joivilege taxes, (which we have rompilgd ftfr our own f
11 '.ui* - f the act icails as fol-; information and guidance, upon the
a peifectly sound juoposition m j missed the facts,'as advocates .say, it is a constant dull
isissippi, where it has pioven woi a e, fjo^.gyg,.^ trouble is that they have headache. This form of taxation cre
ed for hearing «oon.
Ihe momentous first code was sign
ed in the presence of Secretaries Ro-
tax ^o sell, hut only as one charged with cnti^fHc^o^v. hut its soundness in' - , ■ i , i mi.i *vr,v..-*, ...
ionja grave re.spon.Hihility and earnestly remains to be pioven by matter through, fttes resentment, and this »‘‘‘<»‘»ilment of the budget. Turner VV. Bat-
myUeeking lo ThH it, my conclusion ‘ State Tax (omnus-. is registered against the government. | ,
NO—
By J. DMVEB E.M.>IFKI( H
Kdifor, .McComb (Mis.s.) Enterprise
per and Ickes, Lewis W. Douglas, di
rector of the budget. Turner VV. Bat-
i tie, assistant secretary of labor, and
only .'l.H per cent administrative eo.<t.' inent of people cannot be disregarded. 1 Concurrently with the signing of
But iHi-' does not incude the <»,2u0j**7 .Mississippi many complaints 1; j^yjg bfcame known that the ad-
sion makes the cierlitable showing of People are human, and the human ele- Johnson
‘ .Mis.-^iisipfii meichant.s v. lio are com-jl‘^‘^^ silenced because of a P^D’iotic j con.sidering a direct
pelled to servo as tux collectors with- -ealization that our state i.s confront-1 for. hi inging other industries
f w
A
TV]-
• ha'
• X
reports of our f'oM forc», charged ]
IT)),) jitai aft -i till* liuih <lay of with the duty of stNturmg ari l report-i
i. One I'housand Nine Hundred jng only f»cift, and ujion statementaj
• \ TC(77~‘l,eie i^ hereby levied and Jj-om bu.'ine.ss men scaltert*d through-!
It i.s a ‘soak the jiooi* measure
an annoyance to the jiublic, and
an im|)osition on the shopkcoie r.
believcai.lLiii MisAUirippi editor —
, . _ * .«_ nn^ftns
out pay.TT^does not take Thtn cniisid- atf eTfT^ gencyr bUT dfe.spite thi.s j,he terms of the national recov-
eration the efforts of tens of thous- patriotism and reason, the.^^.^ |j- jh^iy come forw'ard
ands of clerks who mu.st make him-; is unpopular and unwanted. | trade agreement*
dreds of thousands of petty transac-| consideration of thi.s problem. Attorney (leneral ('ummings today
i.
tin-
(■ !lt-«-t«‘d. Mumnl p'vvile,!;*-
;(*-d !»> lie .liiio.iut of vul-
V Ilf lo- tl**ne, against the |>er-!
•**<11'. -n ai ■ iont of the business activ-
ilto . ,ii: 1 n t!u- ainoant to be deter-
ii.ru ! 1y Hi.- a;>pti<-atTrin of rates
against valiir-' ol gru^.s- im'-hiic. . or
gro.'' [>i out i-il'' of sale.', as llu* ca-e
may i»e. U' lolloiS'
law pi *>v .lb**' t4ve^ (liffeivilt(
I'ates, 2 **4 i>ei ci nt,
x'ent, 4
cent, Th
>u tlw s a.e. It IS further siihoorted
fiy u .study cumlucled under the direc
tion of Dr. J. W. Bell, dean of the , on .M.ssissiiipi’s lateb‘
I tituLs- Ii fails Ur cun4iier. -that Uuaie .TtVPPbl l**hl‘~.. irHerpretatton to President
ib.'JOh imposeil-upon merchants and ! is characteristic of them j^hat the mandatory provis-
na- . their thousands <)f clerks mu.st mal e [ ri><^nd all of the money at their com- cannot br^come effec-
tlonllave cehtmNHT eager atn^ eollectHms-not-opce -^i^ycar. .btd demand.s of the
introduced re- every tlay; not in stores alone, but at l>‘mlii
Budget-troubled .states of the
inake Ihi.s t)'tje','''b0l true
live until a code is actually n-e.scribed
School of ('ommerre and Business of tail .sale.s tax. In a sen-c this state has i filling
the I'niversity of Mi!i.sissi|>pi. This is
hot**l.s,
lieconu- a tax experinuuit station, and lumber yards and so Pn,
‘Jtat lon.s,
yards and
i;*stauiant.s.
nevertheless. If a re
1 V. i boinsr given to seUing^
tail sales tax IS,perhaps a temimrary .serie.s of'^
Tills costly situation, which is more
a very valiiaVe study for anyone in- 'Irs e.'iierienee can 1m* relied ujMin
teiested in any aHjiecl of the Missis- largely to jtrove or <1-prove the souml-1 oi- J, .s exasperating, may be ignored
*iipj»i law. Th«* conclusions'ill Dr. Bell’s ness (tf the .tail sales tax iioliey. It jn a iieneral consi^lti ation of this .'iib-
published rvjiort are as follows: 4* Mi;-.sissioj .’s sn->\v. yet .Missi.-;.-jiji-j jj- nie! cliant> are interviewed,
1. The tax is excecxling estimates as botli apjdaud and heckle the jj., j have intetwtewed -^citres of tliem.
l;erin.lt.-.l to Wi;om.-_jHLnii^lH-nt_m l-o
states of the union, it is highly
that it will only be un additional tax^ _. '
than a transfer of taxation mhbhiihhhhi
imlustrie# into the
of one per
first .^ix
jtei .ci.at, 1 Jier;y 4-4.ci.|jui’ priMiucer.
* ' ‘2. .Vcl^rding lo the opinion of the'
emit, 1-S of
new tax on
bread aiiil meat and
it v-nild Ik* readily seen that the ef-
ri'thei
from from a tangible to pii intangiule
source. In 11)24 .Mi.ssissijqii adojited an
was advocated
income tax. It
as a
‘lieu’ tax. In.Teatl, it became just an-
luonths of o|M*r-
theT
majority of_ merchants
interviewed,I •
,tr * .1 - * 4 .* • . uvu lUA. I llotVAlil, It MVV<»|IIV J i.-tc «W|-
, 4'tax. l-rui.t.t.v continue.1 lu Wa.'+
l.ilK an,I ,.'...ialls has bal-j-.f-tiv ixia.n^a a,., nksam... flu- oust ^ ^ I
anced .Mississippi’s once badly distort-, ot collecting thi.s tax from thi
mer-'-i
ation in MiAsiss^qu re.sulted in Iieing generally paid; thati . i. i
collection of revenues to the- amount excessive amount of*' ’^ luniget. It has conserved .Mississip-jchants may be low-, but the Qostof col
of $1,173,721 15. Of this amount, 41*.TH [pi’s credit and preserved .Mississijijii’.s j lecting from their cu-stoniers is im
per cent, iiructically one-half, wa.s (U*: „ institution.s. It has been efficiently ad- mca.suialily high.
rivid from the 2 iM*r cent rate on re-, ,• *"’* being •'^’nomically-ad-commis.sion-
tail sales. The cost of administering *n*nirtered. T^* cost of collection ft>* |(*,. y,„j courageously espoused by a
the law was 3.H per cent, or slightly first eight month.* o^ Uie <^P^i'-j jr„vernor devoted to the task of ba!
danger that a retail sales tax might'
The retail sales tax lacks fi.scal ade-
quacy, that is, productivity. A two per
cent .-alt s tax on all merchandise sold.
I,.... Hum four for eiuh .loll., of »>*• Mw w.... only 3.K |m- rcent. I .^ncing the income and outgo of a .*'hip ' on all telephone, telegrajih, power.
This I.s a g*!!!*! reconi foi a new tux. financial .sails have been badly [light, and gas bills, on all intra.state
The income tax, which has lMH*n in op
eration nine years, coats .‘l>t |K*rcent
to administer. 'The ad valorem prop- . . . , . -.i,-**
‘‘ eity lax, which has been in o|>eration' !^ an emergency enactmen . • ‘ , j* , oercent manufacturers’ ta^ all' knows the an.swer. It i.s just'
•• contmuously .i»« IK70. «»l, .pprox-!'» ■•f-'"-'koncy Act of,"f ■>"■ l><'‘^-nt n.unuf.clu.ns tax. all
Mvenii* ri.lleeted. The report of oper
.ition^ !'“i the fust six months con
•a M' tie following statement;
il.i- H-Iaiion between the volumi
. f •; (’• ' tax uollc( iion> thus far made
and .tie potential volume of such ta'x- i,ny^,,|y 5 percenL
•«* . cannot 01 deici inineil until after. ^ The salea tax has
vdl .inrria! letuin^ have been «i‘‘’ount- | gency revenue producer, it has helpeil
*-.i foi. and all neces.saty field and of-| 5. Taking into con-sideration the fact ithose
ti. e a*,dlls have been completed. the tax ia a new one for the pres-“ preponderance
tattered. jiailioad pa.'^^sengei and freight 're-
The .Missis.sippi retail .sales tax law D’^'b’ts, and a one-eighth of one pei r
tax, and a (me-quarier
cent ibbbers’
become an additional tax rather ihan;
a “lieu” tax. ;
! incidentally, when a renter pays a
sales lax, he .should rightfully exnectj
a retluelion in his renj.. But, is it likely,
Ithatjf a landlord did get as much as'
a two or even a four mill reduction on
his pre.sent ad valorem as.sessment of
;frpm forty to ninety mills, that he
'would pass this benefit to his tenant?
11*12,” and is to bt* automatically re
proved itiielf I **^*®*‘‘^ dune 30, 11*34. As an emer-
I' al'O ne(c -aiilv true as to the num-
of injustices which brand the retail
ent generation of MissisHippian.s, it is,
her of taxpayer, leport.ng and the',^„j unpopular Ux. A substantial
'“d on. A
combined in .Mississipni yielded but! moans of
lw„ inillioa dollars, ('ompare.! with,*'''''**''''
the total taxes jiaid to the state, coun
transferring a
to the
YOU CANT
GO WRONG
. . . when you send your
('!eahih]g and I..aundry work
to “The Old Reliable.”
More Service and Better
Werkmanship is what our
lon^ experience enables us
((t effer our customers.
BUCHANAN’S
Dry Cleaners and Laundry
numlM-i of oi.erations ie|)(>i led on. A j majority of merchants and manufae-l A physician wisely gave adrenalin
• arefiil smily^i. justifies us in j mrers approve it. The consumer reg-i a patient who collapsed because of
.ilistar. »i>, f()j_ the period mQi.^ approval than disap- a heart attack, hut if he were to go
^‘‘‘■•’•jproval The spread of the Ux over thejaliout town promiscuously injecting
1 vear and the small aise of the iiav-' hyiiodermic netnlles into the arms of , . ... . •
anu iiw. small aiw- ui toe iniy . un And yct, even With a SIX percent sale.s
men, he would soon be rushed,. .7 * , , . ^ . . . ...
Ik*
I np
»ier levHw. th<* figures given
'>i»lb a. {«> ii'lume of revenue and op-*
*i.iii..n< t.p .'t. I on. [ments appeal lo the Uxpayer.
The office uudits referred- to have- iV. In the iharh, merchants shift thi*
jii.-l I t-eii uoir.pleted. 'I'he field audits tax.
;ue •'!' in pi ogress. We have gone, 7. There is little loss of business in
far enough, however, lo justify the j thi* stateMue to the Ux.,,
statement that the administration of H. The incidence of the Ux is pr^- tiuies.
the 'aw ha.' 'M*en satisfacloi y. This niarily on the consumer. The chief trouble with our Ux situ-
vonelusion IS justified both from my ji. Failure to shift the tax is due | ation during this emergency is not al
ow n, vie v. a' the resjMmsible ailminis- either to the lack of ctvoptiratiori' together that taxes are too high but
tratoi ef the law, and from the view- among the merchants orW^tM^II sales, that incomes are distressingly low.
Mawjr people could not pay their 1932
t OS, numicipalitie.s, and other subdi-|
visions, this i.s a mere bagatelle. Ini
truth, the mountain labored. ,
Eight mills ad valorem brought the'
state only four million dollars. If thisi
were replaced by a sales tax, it w'ould |
he neces.saiy to increase the sales tax
to six jicrcent. .A six percent sale.s I
tax would be confiscatory to busine.ss.'
•tax there could be comparatively little
'property itax relief, for the burden Tn
to an insane asyruin or a jatl Start
ling and speeatcular deeds fnay dur-, ■ ^ .
... , , J » I I this state, as in other states, is large
ing a crisis he es.sential, and yet be , i7..-i - *.. j
HWurd and ridiculous during normal
ly with local, county, and municipal,
government.s. A low sales tax does not I
justify the iinn\en.-.e effort and annoy
ance. .\ high sales tax would l>e ruin- \
ous to th-* busines.s life of any state.
The .structure of the .sale.s tax i.s
simple, but the system of collecting it/j
from the jiublic is both complex and
SH>mplic*ted. Many merchants absor]),
the tax. Others shift it along to their
customers. There are varied scheilules .
of ill.
V<»inl of the tiusThcss opWatloiiiriipoh of certain types of
which tlu* lax vvas leyjml^ Mhiit is^ 10. The sales tax, judgcdYjy it» efr.or 1933 taxes even if their tax bills
s ven nu'ii* inii.ortant, 1 feci cntin*[y | ficiency as a revenue producer, and by were .slashed in half.
^afc in saying that the law has it-s reaction on business m the state ..^alities.
admini-^.civd to the saU.sfaction of the, at a time of great business^istreas as , place, the retail sales tax j of collections. For example grocery
IHiblic. ly whom, in .he la.st analysis, H re^ull of the most severe^pression,;^ founded on a falacy. Proponents'merchants of McComb, SH^sissi-ipi.
th.. t:*:* ba in llu* mam been really the biLsiness world has ever expen- ,ontemf that there are thousands of (population 10,057) adopted the iol-
.,1.1. ha-s justified itself, at lenat, ^o property and low’ing schedule: sales from $.01 to
’ ' ’ ,1. .1 an emergency measure. 1 t^xes. and that the retail j $.19 tax exempt;’ $.20 to $..59, one cent
4. >ay .a 1 po u o u ax as^ The question is frequtmtly asked «**■ sales tax converts these tax dodgers tax; $.*>0 to $1,19, two cents tax; $1.20
us 1..1 piox. n > .un. m i.s. impoi. to whether or not the Missis.sijqii! payers. If this is so, then ' to $1..59, three cents tax; and on up.
temt paiticul:-!.'. t.. wit: acce.* rmih y ,ales tax has reduce4l the ad valcwe n there has not been an individual, a After a" few months it was di.scov-
telhiiijyx:i.a^il.g4mbuyi^^^^^ romi.any,^ or a eorpb^^^^^ fTiat has Icred that this sche'dure was inadequate
mmistiatmu. c.ficicncy of administ* a- knowle.lge of the .state’s revenue '<*tei-l collected a diine’.s profit in fifty years,
lion; broadening the tax base by m- ^^on *1 the time the aales tax law , pypioceile profit. The renter
tduOin-t all tlu- people as taxpayers. enactent. The legislative estimate j p.,y^ the ta.xc' with his rent.
o t (s» may voai.i. anol u i con- of revenues for the years 1932 aiul, Forget this emergency for the mo-- ^ification.
aiderau.m of even greater piaciicul jigu inclmled ad valorem'revenues ef^ ,^,cnt ami consider this problem from I stances lo.st a f)yw ceTits daily orbroke
importance; the tax hai) dev c oped in j,i,hstamially $4,000,000 annually. This ' x 1 j
full mea.sur*. the revenue which <'’as | j^^io-kunt was arrived at by assuming a
vxi>ected of it. The law became eff4‘C: j state tax levy of eight mills. Cmvern-
tive May I, 1952. It was expected to pi^ntal costs for the state, as exiwess
produce $1.3(K).000 of revenue, durmg ed in terms of appropriations, were j dare no dividends. The only way a
for suburban grocers because the av
erage sales were so low that mo.st of
the trade fell in the tax exempt c-las-
Uplown stores in most in-'
.st a m>v ce
an all-time basis. If the retail prici* even on this sche'lHrie. Credit grocers
of an automobie does not carry a pro-lfoun.l it -pimple enough because they
jiortionate part of the tax bill on the charged the two percent to their ac-
automobile plant, the makers can de- count.s at the end of the month.
the remaining eight months of the reduced by approximatery .one-third
year, .May to December. The rev-inm
aictuaily collected amounted to $1,7C-1,-
48?, showing an excess of $463,4H7
aibow the estimate.
'The amount expected for the full
year of 1933 is $2,000,000. At this
writing, collection figures are avail-
arble for only three months of the cur
rent year, January, Februnry and
JMarch, the amount for this period i»e-
umler the previoua- biennial period.
The budget waa actually balanced. The
reductions ia appropriations brought
the total a|»propriaUoa figure down
to approximately $l0,00(k000 for each
year. 1932 aiyl 1933.
An amount of revenue aufGdent to
cover this, with a raaaamme fiietor of
safety, was provkled arom various
' sources. It was uaiversally agreed that
man can dodge taxes is 4o live in a
swamp, cat fish, and go naked. And
to make a complete job of it, he must
I>ry goods stores in this city adopt*-;
ed the following schedule: sales undei ,
$.25 tax exempit; $.‘26 to .74, ope cent]
tax; $.75 to $1.25, two cents tax. I>i'ug|
catch his fish with his hands or he’ll stores maintained a scheilule of their
i^Uf $439,978. In other words, the total there should be no incrense in the ad
pay taxes on the factory that makes j own arrangement. Five and ten cent'
Hsh hooks. I stores absorbed the tax. Stores selling j
There can be no j^x dodgers. Rea-: usually in odd figures such ss 23
son declares it. Yet, friends of a retail • cents, 48 cents, 97 cents, find easy
sales tax argue that a sales tax puts'to absorb and collect the tax.
the tax hlufrden on an otherwise tax-
free people. Particularly is this argu-
c«8)Betions for the first eleven months
arnAkv the act show a revenue of $2,-
20il»4fi5, with collections ktill being re-
ceivei for the period, j
One of the aigiimentr ofteif urged
agsinat n retasK uUm tax is that it
drives boammia^way from the state
lit X fM,.,^fjQ)phaais«
v alorem levy of eight aailla. As point-
ed out above, tlua would produce $4,-
000,000 of $10,000,000 pecessary
for each year. TUs left $6,000,000 to
be raiaod through other ta™#
Rathei* than increase the burden on
ment applied in regard to the Negro
One haberdasher whose chief com
petitor absorbs the sales tax exclaim
tenant farmers ip. Mississippi. The
landlords, however, can be trusted to
ed, “Most of my items are sold in.
even figures, 25 cents, 50 cents and a|
dollar. How can I absorb the tax with-'
sources alreni^ raUbliahed, Govei-nor 1 heads, and not babies and school chil-
l^nner-t:.JOfgej and tha legislature j dren, usually pay the dirvet taxes,'an^
take care of themselves. In Mississippi j out a lossj. But what else is there to!
it was reasoned that only fifteen per do?” This lack of uniformity indi-;
cent of the population paid property J cates the complexity of this type of
taxes. Considering that o/ily family X*xation.
The retail sales tax is also a dis-
tur'uing factor in business. Conditions
Ford's Lead Big
In Wayne County!
Sales of Ford V-8 cars sSid Ford
trucks have taken a commanding
lead in Wayne County, in which De
troit, the motor can center of the
world, is located. This may be taken
as significant of the trend in motor
car buying. Registrations for the
first twmty-four days of June show
ed a total of 1,816 Ford cars and
trucks. This is nearly twice as many
as the nearest other make, which
registered 963 units, while the sec
ond other make sold in the same
period only 623 units.
" ■ ■ Company
Authorized Ford Dealers
Telephone 119
CLINTON. SOUTH CAROLINA
■■ r
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