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Show Chain Store Tax Must Be Upheld, Says Local Man "Number 2 on. Tuesday's ballot, the hotly contested chain store control measure, must be upheld by the people, if we are to preserve pre-serve freedom of individual opportunities oppor-tunities in Utah," George Jefferson, Jeffer-son, chairman of the local citizens committee for Number 2, declared. Mr. Jefferson stated that the wealth of Wall Street is being employed em-ployed in frantic efforts to defeat the measure. "The very evidence of their great wealth and power as illustrated by their extravagant and wasteful campaign to defeat this bill, is one of the greatest reasons why the law should be upheld," up-held," Mr. Jefferson stated. The chain store control law was passed by the 1941 legislature by a decisive majority of 13 senators and 39 representatives. Following the adoption of the measure by the legislature, Governor Herbert B. Maw signed the bill which was to have become law had the chain stores not intervened to overrule the intent of the legislature and governor by procuring sufficient signatures to referendum petitions to bring the law before the people on Tuesday, November 3. Mr. Jefferson pointed out that every penny of chain stores' net profits leaves our state "as soon as it is collected from the people." "It is only fair." he added "that Wall Street should leave in Utah, where it was earned, a small portion of the large profits which it takes out of the state every year." "This law will keep in Utah, approximately ap-proximately $50,000 per year which otherwise would go east as extra net profit to the corporate interests. We believe it to be beyond be-yond question, that if we keep some of that Utah money in Utah, the tax burden of Utah's people will be relieved to that extent," he added, ridiculing the chain store claims that the law would be a tax on the people and that it would be a "death tax" on the chains. "The chains have yet to point out a single store which would have to close under the law," Mr. Jefferson said. "As a matter of fact, the small $500 license of existing outlets, represents repre-sents less than Vi of 1 of the annual an-nual business of the average chain covered by the law," "If the people vote against this wise action of our legislature and governor, they will be giving a green light to the unlimited expansion ex-pansion of Wall Street wealth in Utah. Opportunities for our young people in businesses of their own will eventually be destroyed. We must place this control over chain store expansion now to preserve pre-serve individual enterprise in Utah. We are confident that the people will not be 'taken in' by the deception and misrepresentations misrepresenta-tions of the chains, but will vote courageously in support of this law which freezes chain store outlets out-lets at their present number." district, which is composed of Beaver and Millard counties. |