3/4 MISC. PUBLICATION 218, U.S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE 
would hesitate to seek classification under an optional forest-tax law, 
would we.come classification initiated by State authority and would 
proceed to put their plans into effect. It was also hoped that such 
classification, by offering a moderate tax without imposing any obli- 
gation other than fire protection, would check the tendency to let 
cut-over forest lands revert to public ownership and would ultimately 
lead to increased practice of forestry by private owners not now 
interested in this use. 
The theoretical and practical soundness of these various expedients 
is discussed in the following section and in part 12. 
EXISTING FOREST-TAX LAWS 
INTRODUCTION 
Having traced the history of specia! forest-tax legislation from its 
beginning n the United States to the present date, attention is now 
directed to the more important provisions and results of the aws on 
the statute books of the States at the present time (1933). There are 
at present in effect 35 special forest-tax laws in 26 States. These 
include all 3 Pennsylvania laws (1 yield tax and 2 rebate) held uncon- 
stitutional by decisions which have not been tested by appeal to the 
highest court. These laws have been carefully analyzed, and digests 
of all those in effect on January 1, 1932, have been published in a 
progress report,!® to which the reader is referred for a description of 
the essential features of the several laws. Certain of these digests, 
modified on account of amendments through 1933, will be used later 
in this part to illustrate the various types of special forest-tax legis- 
lation. 
In order to facilitate comparisons between the several laws, each of these 
digests follows a uniform list of topics in uniform order. Marginal numbers in 
the digests refer to these topics, as listed in the following outline: 
I. Classification and designation. 
II. Modification of general property tax: 
1. Elements of property favored. 
2. Character of favor. 
3. Elements of property not affected. 
4. Apportionment of State and local taxes. 
5. Operation of property tax otherwise not changed. 
III. New specific or other special property tax: 
1. Description. 
2. Administration. 
3. Penalties. 
4. Distribution of revenue. 
IV. Yield tax: 
1. Object (i. e., material upon which imposed). 
2. Exceptions (i. e., material not subject to yield tax). 
3. Rate. 
4. Official permission to cut (when required for administration of 
yield tax). 
5. Administration: Owner’s statement, assessment, appeal, penalties, 
etc. 
6. Collection (when different from general property tax). 
7. Distribution of revenue. 
V. Relief from other taxes and other favors. 
VI. Contribution of State to towns or counties: 
1. Purpose. 
2. Amount and measure; to whom paid. 
3. Distribution. 
16 See footnote 10, on page 14. 
