98 UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO STUDIES 



matter of an income tax has established the principle that such a tax 

 may be successful at a rate anywhere from 2 to 6 per cent, but beyond 

 6 per cent the rate is regarded by the taxpayer as confiscatory and 

 the evasions are so great that the amount of revenue derived is smaller 

 than can be obtained when the tax is imposed at a lower rate. It 

 thus appears that public opinion regards the assessment of intangible 

 property at its full value by the general property tax as confiscatory 

 and accordingly does not frown on the evasion of the law in the 

 assessment of this class of property. 



A practical remedy for this wholesale evasion of taxation of 

 intangible wealth has been proposed. This is to tax intangible 

 property as a special class and at lower rate than other property is 

 taxed. In this way the injustice of the confiscatory nature of the 

 present tax may be done away with and the support of pubHc opinion 

 enlisted in the efforts to bring to light all intangible wealth. Thus 

 the revenue from such taxes is increased. 



This has been the case in Pennsylvania. In that state, since 1879, 

 there has been a tax of 4 mills on the dollar of intangible property. 

 The result has been a great increase in the valuation of intangible 

 property locally assessed. 



INTANGIBLE PROPERTY LOCALLY ASSESSED IN PENNSYL- 

 VANIA* 



1885 $145,300,000 1900 $ 722,900,000 



1888 429,800,000 1903 847,100,000 



1891 575,300,000 1906 932,900,000 



1894 '613,900,000 1907 1,014,000,000 



1897 673,700,000 



• Bullock, "General Property Tax in the United States," Boston Transcript, January 13, 20, 27, 1909. 

 Reprinted by the International Tax Association, Columbus, Ohio. 



The annual average yield of the tax on corporate loans alone was 

 $300,000 for the period 1886 to 1890, and $1,500,000 for the period 

 1900 to 1905. This remarkable increase shows clearly the advan- 

 tage of assessing intangible property at a lower rate than the general 

 property tax presumes to do.' 



' BuixocK, op. cit. 



