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Show TAX ASSOCIATION HAS ITS PROBLEMS INHERITANCE TAX QUESTIONS MAIN TOPIC OF DECISION AT . SALT LAKE MEETING. Delegates From Forty-one States and Territories of Hawaii and Porto Rico Attend Thirteenth Annual Convention. Salt Lake City. At the e-pening session of the thirteenth annual convention con-vention of the National Tax associa tion, on September 7, a tetal of 223 delegates had registered, in addition to about two-score women guests of the convention The representation includes in-cludes delegates from forty-oue states, in addition to the Districtof Columbia and the territories of Hawaii and Porto Rico. It is said that this was the largest representation ever had at any convention of the association. Inheritance tax questiens were the main topic of discussion at the afternoon after-noon session, held at Saltair, and practically the only subject debated at the round table meeting of the evening. even-ing. An interlude was taken in the evening meeting to permit the delegates dele-gates to hear from Senator Reed ' Smoot, who declared that a great necessity ne-cessity exists for reform of the revenue rev-enue system of the United States government, gov-ernment, and announced his intention, if returned to the senate, to undertake under-take that reform. The morning session, also at Saltair, was taken up with an address by Governor Gov-ernor D. W. Davis of Idaho, on the cabinet form of government; one by William Bailey, secretary ef the Utah state board of equalization, on the increased in-creased powers and duties of that board, and one from Frank Orr of Oklahoma, former chief clerk of the tax commission and now tax agent for the Sinclair company, a big oil concern, on taxation of oil companies. At the afternoon session the annual review of legislation of 1919 and 1920, by Professor O. C. Lockhart, now of the National Bank of Commerce, of New York, proved the nature of the legislation in some of the states to Be a fitting introduction to the subject of Inheritance taxes, next on the program. pro-gram. Attorney W. M. McCrea of Salt Lake read a paper by Professor Charles W. Gerstenberg f New York university, which proposed that the federal government should be made collector of inheritance taxes, and also suggested that it be used as an agency in distributing the funds among the states in such form as school support and road construction. This was followed by a progress report re-port from -William B. Belknap of Louisville, Ky chairman of the committee com-mittee on inheritance taxes, appointed by the association some months ago. Mr. Belknap reported that at present the state inheritance tax laws are in very much of a "muddle," and he pointed point-ed out many problems which remain unsolved. He said the committee was not as yet a unit on any proposed solution, so-lution, and he invited suggestions from the members of the association, and also the presentation of any further problems that experience might have developed in the respective states. . Announcement that respouslbe treasury treas-ury officials are considering some form of a tax on undivided earnings of corporations, cor-porations, as a way out of the situation situa-tion created by the decision of the United States supreme court, to the effect ef-fect that stock dividends are not subject sub-ject to the excess profits tax, was made at the meeting of the National Tax association on Wednesday. Thomas W. Page, chairman of the United States tariff commission, explained ex-plained the history of that organization, organiza-tion, now four years old, telling of the frequent changes in the tariff which led to its formation and of the large duties Imposed on it. He also gave a sketch of the chaotic condition of commercial relations . between countries coun-tries following the world war. A vigorously worded paper by Professor Pro-fessor II. M. Halg of Columbus university univer-sity was read. Referring to the apparent ap-parent tendency of real estate owners own-ers and operators to conclude that their interests will be promoted by exemption ex-emption from income tax, both state and federal, of the interest on mortgages, mort-gages, Professor Halg concludes that such u proposal may be unhesitatingly unhesitating-ly branded as shortsighted and unwise. un-wise. Douglas Sutherland of the Illinois constitutional convention committee on taxation, sketched the problem presenting pre-senting itself In Illinois, where the property tax is carried under the present pres-ent constitution, while there is a large amount of property In the state which cannot be reached under the present constitution. |