Show inequalities IN OUR PRESENT TAX SYSTEM EDITORS NOTE constitutional amendments dealing with tax revision will come before the polls polle next 1 bovera ber believing that the people will want to acquaint them themselves with the subject we are presenting herewith the first of a series of explanatory or nr tides sponsored by local citizens before any program of tax reform can be prop understood it first becomes necessary to examine into our present tax system and see aee whether there is heed for revision for more than thirty five years utah has been relying on the general property tax to finance its state school and local government this a system of taxation la substantially the same form as it Is found today was in effect before the constitution wa was adopted it has gervea served through a period when almost revolutionary changes occurred in our mode of lly ily ins and in the forms ot of wealth has our system of kept pace with changing economic conditions undoubtedly the continuance of the old tax system in the face of our changing economic satus has resulted in perpetuating gross gros atles and iniquities in distribution of the tax burden to the home owner the holder of real estate and other forms of tangible pro property peTty these inequalities are already well known he has haa seen some 0 of f his property taxed almost to the breaking point while other property has hag been beed tolerated to remain almost exempt reports of 0 the state board ot of equalization show that the annual tax bill has avenged bout of lato late years this has been raised for state school county and municipal pur par poses and has haa been received almost entirely from taxation of property which aan can be readily reached because I 1 it at has a tangible existence that will not permit it to be easily hidden less than one and one halt half percent ot of this tax bill has been from taxation of stocks bonds credits and other intangible forms of wealth property ownership has long since ceased to be any accurate gauge of i a persons income nd since all I 1 must eventually be paid from income property ownership has therefore ceased to be any accurate e index of a persons taxable ability this brings us to the very heart of the tax problem in utah mr john H watson director of the department of tax taxation atlon and statistics of the illinois abric agric agricultural association has prepared so some me very significant information dealing with taxation and In incomes comis it was waa recently announced by the state board that his figures show thai that during the past few years the annual income in utah has haa averaged about por per year ot of this 0 only about 25 per cent comes from property and the remaining 75 15 per cent or aboud JR la earn earned ed from personal services such as wages salaries commissions etc we levy a tax of 00 annual ly upon property which earns only about 25 percent of the income and we levy not one cent of tax on the source of income which represents 75 percent of the total in other words about of income annually pays paya all the tax for support of the state and its ita political units while of income earned in this state annually pays no state or local tax an accurate analysis of the situation shows even further tho income which pays the annual tax bill includes 1 I 1 income acome from intangible proper property 17 these intangibles contribute less than one and and one halt half percent of the tax 7 7 it Is impossible to state accurately just how much in tangible pro property party there Is located in the state but the federal income tax raburn i indicate there Is at least of productive wealth in intangibles owned by persons who pay a federal income tax this does not include the small blocks of intangibles owned by the great numbers num fiers who do not pay any federal ansome tax certainly intangible property represents a big part of the property of the afie state slate and yet there la Is practically none of it on the tax rolls as shown by the tact fact that intangible property as a class pays less than one and one halt percent of the annual load problem of tax revision therefore will be a readjustment in the distribution of tho the tax burden which w cli will shift part of the cost of local government from tangible property which has apen a I 1 carrying the load to income or to in t bles while they have ability to pay have not fiot been brought to he tax rolls here later articles artl elds will no doubt show how this would be dealt with under the th a pi proposed constitutional amendments to be voted on next november |