The ABC of taxation

Bibliographic data

Monograph

Identifikator:: 1010741608

URN:: urn:nbn:de:zbw-retromon-21094

Document type:: Monograph

Author:: Fillebrown, Charles Bowdoin

Title:: The ABC of taxation

Edition:: Fourth edition specially revised

Place of publication:: Garden City, New York

Publisher:: Doubleday, Page & Company

Year of publication:: 1916

Scope:: 1 Online-Ressource (236 Seiten)

Digitisation:: 2018

Collection:: Economics Books

Usage license:: Get license information via the feedback formular.

Chapter

Document type:: Monograph

Structure type:: Chapter

Title:: Part IV. Appendix

Collection:: Economics Books

APPENDIX E 185 as much as my own, and mine have rapidly perished in the attempt. “I think we are all agreed that the value of the land of Newton is created by the whole community of Newton, with its improve ments, character, activity, and its industry. Are we not also agreed upon the fact, equally important and more patent perhaps to the casual observer, viz., that this land value is maintained from year to year by the public expenditure of New ton’s taxes ? When yoijr public service ceases or languishes, when you stop the care of streets, the water supply, fire depart ment, or the schools, land values respond almost instantly. All these public expenditures of the people’s money add nothing to the value of a house—which value is ultimately the cost of building another house as good— but they do add to or rather maintain the value of my neighbours’ land and mine, which otherwise would rapidly depreciate in value. Why should you tax the decaying value of my house, to help maintain the aug menting value of hundreds of other men’s vacant acres, standing unused, just like so many idle mills supplied with the main shafting from nature’s power house with a great city’s lavish supplies on tap ? “There would be far more reason to ask me and others to pay taxes on our houses, if public service were at all limited to the needs of these houses, instead of being, as it is, vastly in excess, if not indeed double, that need. This public service costs the same for a vacant lot as it does for the adjoining similar lot with a $20,000 house on it. 1 object to being taxed to pay for the other man’s share of this public service. “Thus I am asking abatement of a tax that is H upon improvements and personal property and fa upon land, because it is in violation of the requirements of the constitution of the State of Massachusetts that all assessments shall be ‘pro portionate and reasonable’; because it is more than my propor tionate and reasonable share of the total assessment—unequal taxation for equal benefits. “Now for what purpose do you lay taxes except for public

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