TAXATION AND REVENUE SYSTEMS—ARKANSAS. 27
E. BUSINESS Tx^XES, LICENSES, AND FEES.
The county authorities may impose license taxes as
follows: (Unless otherwise noted, the amount given
is the fee for doing business for one year.)
Liquor dealers, retail, $400, 2 per cent thereof as a collection
fee, and $2 as clerk’s fee. Wholesale dealers in malt liquors, $100,
unless they hold retailer’s license. Marriage licenses, 50 cents.
Peddlers, $25 every six months or less. Circuses and menageries,
$100 per day and $50 for each side show. County courts may
license and tax exhibitions for profit. Theaters in cities of 20.000
and over, where no liquor is sold, $100. Auctioneers, $10 for six
months or less. Agents, owners, or manufacturers traveling and
selling lightning rods, steel stove ranges, clocks, pumps, buggies,
carriages, and vehicles, $200. River traders, $100. The county
court licenses ferries, and may charge a license tax of not less than
$1 nor more than $100. Auction duties payable to the county are:
(1) On sales of personal property, 1£ per cent; (2) on sales of real
estate or household interest in land, one-half of 1 per cent. Non
residents are prohibited from hunting and fishing in all counties
except Clay and Stone. In these two counties hunting and fishing
by nonresidents are licensed for a fee of from $5 to $15. All the
above license taxes are collected by the tax collector, who receives
5 per cent commission, which is paid by the person taxed.
Each criminal conviction in courts of record, $3; each civil suit in
courts of record, $3; each writ of summons and writ of execution, 50
cents; each certificate of record in any recorder’s office, except
mortgages, 50 cents; each certificate of mortgage, 15 cents.
Municipal Revenues.
A. GENERAL PROPERTY TAXES.
1. Base—
The property included and the method of assessment
and of equalization are the same for cities and towns
as for the state.
2. Bate—
The amount of taxes levied in any one year by the
constituted authorities of any municipal corporation
for city or town purposes is limited by the constitution
to 5 mills for general purposes, and is further limited
by statute to that number of mills on the dollar
which, when applied to the total property of the city
or town as assessed and equalized that year, will pro
duce a sum equal to the total taxes levied against
the property of the city or town for municipal pur
poses the year next preceding, plus 10 per cent of said
total taxes. For paying indebtedness existing at the
time of the adoption of the present constitution a tax
not exceeding the rate levied for other city or town
purposes may be levied.
The council of any municipal corporation shall
certify to the county clerk the rate of taxation
levied by such municipal corporation. If a munici
pality did not levy a tax in the year next preced
ing, that rate may be levied for the current year, which
when applied to the total property of the municipality
as assessed and equalized in the current year will pro
duce a sum 10 per cent in excess of the sum produced
by applying a rate of 5 mills on the dollar to the prop
erty within such municipal corporation as assessed
and equalized in such next preceding year. A tax of
not exceeding one-half of 1 mill may be levied for the
establishment and maintenance of public libraries.
3. Collection—
Municipal taxes are collected, as are state and county
taxes, by the sheriff, who is ex officio county collector,
and paid over by him to the city treasury.
B. POLL TAXES.
There is no poll tax for municipal purposes.
C AND D. INHERITANCE AND CORPORATION TAXES.
The municipalities do not share in the inheritance
tax nor in the corporation tax.
E. BUSINESS TAXES, LICENSES, AND FEES.
Municipal corporations may license, regulate, tax, or suppress
ordinaries, hawkers, peddlers, brokers, pawnbrokers, money
changers, intelligence offices, public masquerade balls, street ex
hibitions, sparring exhibitions, dance houses, fortune tellers, pistol
galleries, corn doctors; private and venereal hospitals; muse
ums and menageries, equestrian performances, horoscopic views,
lung testers, muscle developers, magnifying glasses, billiard tables,
or any other tables or instruments used for gaming; theatrical or
other exhibitions, shows, and amusements; tippling houses and
dramshops; or any gift enterprises, and may suppress prize fights,
dog fights, chicken cockfights, gaming, or gambling houses. But
the licensing of saloons is dependent upon a local option law.
Municipal corporations also have the power to tax public auction
eers not less than $5 nor more than $100 per annum, and to impose
a tax on dogs and other domestic animals not included in the list
of taxable property.
School Revenues.
The proceeds of all lands granted by the United
States to the state; also all moneys, stocks, bonds,
land, and other property belonging to any fund for
education at the time of the passage of the act (Decem
ber, 1875); also the net proceeds of all sales of lands
and other property and effects that may accrue to
the state by escheat, or from sales of estrays, or
from unclaimed dividends, or distributive shares of
deceased persons; also 10 per cent of the net proceeds
of the sale of all state lands; also all grants, gifts, or
devises that are made to the state are to be invested
in the common school fund.
The poll tax and the special school levy on prop
erty are treated as current revenue for the support
of common schools. A tax levy sufficient to maintain
the schools in any district longer than three months
must be sanctioned by a vote of the electors in the
school district. Such vote may be taken at any law
ful meeting at which not less than five electors shall
be present. But such tax may not exceed 1 per cent
of the assessed valuation.
LEGISLATION AFFECTING REVENUE LAWS'. 1913.
Corporations doing business in Arkansas pay an annual franchise
tax of one-fifteenth of 1 per cent upon their capital stock except as
hereinafter provided. Any corporation doing business for profit