FOREST TAXATION IN THE UNITED STATES 519 
None of the special forest tax plans which are recommended in 
part 12 of this report has any counterpart in European tax practice, 
with the exception of the differential timber tax. In certain Cantons 
of Switzerland, as already explained, forest property is assessed at a 
lower ratio to actual value than other rural real estate. The reduc- 
tion factor in these cases, so far as known, is not based specifically on 
the degree of income deferment which attaches to the very small 
private holdings. It appears to be rather an allowance in recognition 
of the legal and social obligations attached to forest ownership in 
Switzerland. However, the differentials used in these Cantons fall 
within the same range proposed for adoption in the United States, and 
the method tends to remove whatever tax disadvantages may be in- 
volved in maintaining these small forest holdings. 
European experience indicates clearly that the payment of sub- 
stantial annual taxes on forest property, regardless of the time when 
income is realized, is not of itself a serious obstacle to forestry. On 
the other hand, the tax systems of all the countries studied in one way 
or another recognize and make some allowance for the peculiar nature 
of forest property. 
