FOREST TAXATION IN THE UNITED STATES 35 
They are relatively largest in Massachusetts, where they amount, in 
aggregate, to from 9 to 16 percent of all revenue and are mainly earn- 
ings of public-service enterprises. 
The discussion of subventions and grants has been reserved to the 
last because these items are of so much interest and importance to 
this study. Except in Massachusetts, subventions and grants are 
second to the property tax as a source of local revenue. They are 
obtained largely from the State governments, although the Federal 
Government supplies a certain amount of aid. In States containing 
national forests (with the exception of Arizona and New Mexico where 
a different method is used), the Federal Government pays the State 
25 percent of the national-forest gross receipts from timber sales and 
other uses for the support of schools and roads in the counties where 
these forests are located. In addition, it contributes to the building 
and maintenance of roads in and adjacent to national forests. In 
Oregon, Federal aid has been increased by substantial contributions 
to counties in place of taxes on revested railroad and wagon-road land 
grants. These contributions amount to $788, 198 in the forest and 
$764,030 in the agricultural counties of Oregon, 7 .6 and 7.8 percent, 
respectively, of all revenues. 
Highways constitute the chief purpose for which State aid is 
granted in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Oregon, and a 
substantial purpose, though second to education, in California. 
Except in Oregon, the forest localities of these States recelve more 
revenue in percentage of total from subventions and grants than 
do the semiforest and agricultural localities. This is largely due to 
the fact that the forest localities are the less thickly settled and hence 
highways represent a relatively more important part of all govern- 
mental activities. The State-aided roads in thinly settled regions 
often benefit city dwellers more than they do the local residents. 
Such aids are thus not strictly of a subsidy nature, but are rather 
payments to localities for performing general State functions. 
In Oregon, on the other hand, agricultural localities receive more 
revenue from subventions and grants proportionately to all revenue 
than do the forest localities. When the data are reduced to per 
capita terms, however, it is evident that in Oregon, as in New Hamp- 
shire, Massachusetts, and California, the forest localities receive a 
larger amount of State aid than do the agricultural localities. Popula- 
tion figures and per capita revenue are presented in table 16. 
