FOREST TAXATION IN THE UNITED STATES 511 
Consequently more than a half of the forest area is in the possession 
of individual owners, and of the productive forest land an even 
greater portion. The same survey showed a total growing stock of 
1,620,000,000 cubic meters (57,200,000,000 cubic feet) solid measure, 
bark included. The annual cut and consumption was estimated at 
about 40,000,000 cubic meters (1,400,000,000 cubic feet) (281). More 
recent studies have shown that increment and annual cut are fairly 
well balanced. 
In recent years exports of the forest industries, including pulp and 
paper, have amounted in value to about 85 percent of the total exports 
of the country (253, pp. 5-6). In 1927 these industries employed 47 
percent of all industrial workers and the output was valued at 
5,357,000,000 markkaa ($135,000,000). 
TAXES THAT AFFECT FOREST PROPERTY 
PROPERTY TAX 
The property tax is used for national revenue only. The law 
requires that the assessment shall be based on current prices, and the 
intention appears to be that market value as indicated by actual sales 
should govern. The national tax board in each commune is charged 
with making the assessment. In practice the assessments are difficult 
to determine and the results are generally unsatisfactory. The 
assessed values are likely to be low relative to actual values. They 
are reported to be very unequal as between communes, and to be 
influenced by the political complexion of the tax boards. A socialist 
majority on the board is likely to mean high assessments, while if 
landowners control the board the assessments are low. 
The tax rates are progressive, depending on the assessed value of 
the property owned by the individual taxpayer. In general, they are 
rather low, ranging from about 0.015 percent on small fortunes to a 
maximum of about 0.8 percent on large ownerships.® 
GENERAL INCOME TAXES 
Taxes on income are levied both by the communes and by the 
National Government. The administration of these taxes is handled 
by local tax boards, both communal and national, as previously 
described. The principles governing the determination of income are 
the same for both the communal and the national income taxes. 
The income tax is applied to forests not according to the actual 
income realized from the particular properties, but according to the 
general average net return of the Province from properties of the same 
soil quality. It is quite independent of the actual income obtained in 
any particular year. 
The first step in assessing the annual income of a forest property 
is the determination of its annual yield in wood volume based on the 
area of each site-quality class in the property being valued. This is 
done for each commune by a qualified forester using a general scheme 
of classification, in which five different site qualities are ordinarily 
recognized. To the area in each site-quality class is applied the 
appropriate average annual yield in cubic meters of solid wood volume 
83 Rates of 1926, calculated from a property tax table by property categories (282, p. 257). 
