Salt Lake Telegram | 1932-02-11 | Page 11 | $8000 Lost by Utah in Fail Ure to Collect Tax

LOST BY UTAH IN FAILURE TO COLLECT TAX No Effort Made by Secretaries Secretaries Secre Secre- tades of State to Get Gas Station l Levy vy The state of ot Utah has been denied thousands of dollars each year for nine years because the secretaries secre scene of state slate have not seen fit to enforce enforce en en- force that section of the gasoline tax law which puts a levy on filling stations stations stations sta sta- sta- sta The Telegram learned Thurs Thurs- day Section 2 of the gasoline tax law sets forth that each filling mUng station in inthe inthe inthe the state shall pay a tax of 1 per quarter or 4 per year Since there are in excess of 2000 stations in the state it can be assumed that the state has been deprived of about or or a year in this revenue Milton H H. Welling present secretary secretary secretary secre secre- tary of state admitted Thursday that he had made no effort to enforce this section of the law and that that section sec sec- tion had been a dead letter since it was written in 1923 He stated that as far as he can learn no secretary of state has attempted to make the col col- col- col NO COLLECTION AGENCY When I came into office I found that section of oC the law a dead letter and after alter due consideration I did not think It necessary to revive it Mr Welling said In the first place the legislature has never made sible for us to collect that fee probably proba bly because it ft would cost more to collect collect col col- col lect it than we would get out of it We have an appropriation of with which to the gasoline Continued on Pare EI Eighteen s a LOST BY i I IUT UTAH UT AM IN ltd FAILURE TO COLLECT TAX TAXI I Continued From P Page eo o Eleven en tax ax law Of ot this amount goes to o the deputy in charge of that work and nd goes to a stenographer who puts In about half of ot her time In that department Whenever any filling station operators operators oper opere have come In and offered to pay the fee iee we have taken their money But we have not made any effort whatsoever to go out and force payments The Idea seemed to me to be jusa just jus justa a nuisance tax on an Industry which is s already paying payin in excess of 2 2 annually in gasoline taxes RECORDS LACKING When the tax evasion committee which represents many substantial business concerns in the state called upon me for an explanation I gave them this kind of ot n a talk I told them that this office did not even have a record or a census of the filling tilling stations sta sta- One member of or the committee tol told me that ho would furnish me wit with i I the Jhc desired information n. n l 1 an him that if he would woul d do that T I 1 T go out and get the ae oi money nu or n no nuisance appropriation P Whoa appropriation or of he That Is the last I 1 h have the to matter from the tax m mitt tee ce evasion Ij Mr Welling Indicated that h i be t I willing villing to enforce that section l law law aw if it there were S ot any a apparent pp a sIre ire on the K part of ot th the e have It enforced b but Ut the r Kg act leu tr tha Ou has rem remained untouched on tF M I ute books would indiC indicate tha that t law had just lust died a natu natural d