Show INSIDE STUFF ON POLITICS FINANCE I Utilities Moan l Over Tax Planning to Pass It to Consumers NEW YORK By James Wall street had a lovely time last week playing Bond pool bond pool who's got the bond pool The framework of the pool was I carefully assemble but it has still to tobe tobe tobe be clothed Action awaited the presidents presidents dents dent's signature on the tax bilL bUL News of f the pools pool's existence Is expected to help out in Washington The prospect of the tho Young commit commit- tee ee stepping into the picture for public consumption did not go over so well with some of the banks The plan was vas broached in other quarters before before be- be fore ore it reached the committee Many bankers jankers dislike the federal reserve attitude at at- of tr trying ing to make member banks the goat for failure of the credit program The idea of forming a special investing invest ing lag organization to which the banks could subscribe had strong sponsors Such profits as may arise out of opera opera- Ions are to be divided pro rata There Theres Is s solid belief in the size of ot the profits Preliminaries to the formation of the pool were not entirely ous One large bank was stubborn about refusing to join At last reports it had been won over to limited par The pool will wm start with a capital of This is a sort of an experimental ex f fund und If this sum produces satisfactory results further investments invest Invest- ments will be made Otherwise nothing nothing noth noth- ing tog doing Widespread rumors that the pool was in operation were largely responsible sible for the the securities markets markets mar mar- on June 2 and 3 As one bank official put it If the public believes the pool is operating it doesn't much matter whether it really is or not a a a aThe The senate tax bill blU aroused no enthusiasm en en- in irs the financial community The best that is said of it is that it should help to clear up the governments governments government's govern govern- ments ment's financial tangle Specific taxes especially those on the motor industry industry industry indus indus- try and on utilities are arc widely The general feeling is that the exact balancing of the budget is not tant The impetus to confidence is given by the gesture which will wm at least subtract a billion dollars from the deficit a a 4 Utility companies are moaning to high heaven about the 3 per cent tax on gross receipts Pressure was strong in Washington to have it abated modi modi- fled in wording or both Some of ol them contend that the tax bill will take as much as a 30 per cent tax on profits If it could have been passed on quietly as a sales tax all would have been sweet Other analysts point out that the strongest utility companies have such wide margins of profit that they could bear the tax with nothing more than thana a 7 to 10 per cent decrease In earnings per share This Is indicated b by the ratio of total net income to gross revenues revenues reve reve- last year in the case of leading companies For example The ratio was 48 46 per cent for American Gas and Electric 36 per cent for tor Consolidated Gas 34 per cent for Public Service of New Jersey and 45 per cent for United Gas Improvement Plans are already afoot to pass on the 3 per cent tax to private consumers con con- sumers but not to industrial con can sumers This move may be blocked by state commissions |