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AprU, 1033 



THE I. A. A. RECORD 



Page Five 



lii The State Sales Tax 



I. A. A. Amendments Provide For Equitable Distribution And Make It a Replacement Tax 



Enactment of the administra- 

 tion's state sales tax which went 

 into effect April 1 paves the way 

 for substantial reductions in prop- 

 erty taxes in all down-state coun- 

 ties where unemployment relief is 

 not a major problem. 



The measure of relief to property 

 will depend upon the amount of 

 revenue raised by the new taxing 

 measure. Based on estimated re- 

 turns of $40,000,000 in the next 

 twelve months, the sales tax will 

 make possible reductions in levies 

 against property for educational 

 purposes in the various counties as 

 indicated in the accompanying 

 table. 



The revenue from the sales tax 

 in each county will be used wholly 

 to reduce property taxes for educa- 

 tional purposes unless the county 

 board by a two-thirds vote decides 

 that part or all of such revenue 



be diverted for unemployment re- 

 relief in 1933 or 1934. 



The prospective reduction in 

 property taxes, according to John 

 C. Watson, director of taxation, who 

 compiled the data, is contingent 

 upon all of the money returned to 

 the counties being used for educa- 

 tional purposes in which case levies 

 against property by school districts 

 must be cut to the extent funds are 

 derived from the sales tax. The re- 

 duction in property taxes, likewise, 

 is contingent upon local school 

 boards not increasing their levies 

 for educational purposes above ex- 

 penditures in the school year of 

 1930-31. 



"If any school board," said Mr. 

 Watson, "takes advantage of the 

 situation to increase its levy in the 

 coming year above the 1930-31 fig- 

 ure the effect will be to lower the 

 saving made possible by the re- 



placement feature of the sales tax. 

 It is up to the taxpayers of every 

 county to see that there is no un- 

 necessary diversion of sales tax 

 revenue to unemployment relief, 

 and also to see that school boards 

 hold down their levies consistent 

 with the greatly reduced ability to 

 pay, of property owners." 



Some question has arisen regard- 

 ing the Illinois Agricultural Associa- 

 tion's interest and part in the pas- 

 sage of the state sales tax com- 

 mented President Earl C. Smith. 

 The I. A. A. did not sponsor this 

 measure. The sales tax was 

 sponsored by the state adminis- 

 tration. The original measure 

 provided that all revenue was to be 

 made available to the state unem- 

 ployment relief commission. Ex- 

 penses in 1932 revealed that Cook 

 county received more than 90 per 

 (Continued on page 6) 



called on President Roosevelt recently. The White House is in the Background. 



Left to rlKht! Henry A. Wallace, Secretary of Agrrrlcnltarei C. E. Huff, prefildent. Farmers National Grain Corp.; 

 Ralph Snyder, NatM Committee of Farm Orgranlxations; Earl C. Smitli, president, Illinoia Asrlcultural Ass'nt W. B. 

 Blalock, president, American Cotton Co-op. Ass'n; Dr. O. O. Wolf. Director, National Livestoclc Marlcetlng Ass'n; Cons. 

 W. P. Lambertson, vice-nresident. Farmers Union; M. L. Wilson, Montana Asricnltural Collesei Dante Pierce, publislier 

 Wallace's Farmer-Iowa Homestead. 



