License Fees. 
169 
territory, 1 and receiving all the license money into the state 
treasury for the use of the state. The other extreme is to give 
the county board, or city council, power to determine the 
amount and collect it for local purposes, sometimes however 
within some maximum limit. 2 The same idea is carried out 
where the legislature fixes the size of the fee, but allows it to 
be paid into the county treasury. 3 
It is but natural that the license fee should vary greatly in 
amount on account of the differences in the character of the 
various states themselves; 4 for example, a single license in 
New York or Philadelphia would be much more valuable than a 
state license for Delaware or for some of our Western states. 
The state license charges are very often pure taxes, and not pay¬ 
ments for any actual privileges. Of the same nature as a circus 
license is a theater license. The fees for these are still fixed for 
many municipalities by the legislatures. Alabama varies them 
according to the population, from $50 to $100. California 
gauges them according to the seating capacity of the houses, 
from $400 to $600. Other states attempt to vary them slightly 
according to the length of time or the number of performances, 
while still others charge a certain annual sum for the building, 
and collect nothing from the theatrical companies. The regula¬ 
tion of these has already in very many states passed into munic¬ 
ipal control; and indeed it is but natural that they should, as 
all the extra police protection and all the services of other mu¬ 
nicipal activities required by theaters, are rendered directly 
by the municipality and not by the state. 
Pennsylvania charges $1,000 for the whole state, $500 for Philadelphia, 
$200 for Alleghany county, and $50 for other counties. 
2 Iowa: county board may determine the amount, not exceeding $1,000. 
16 Gen. Laws , Ch. 131, par. 1. 
3 South Carolina, 1875, XV, 845, par 1. 
4 Kentucky (1890, par. 1049), has a peculiar method of gauging circus 
licenses. The law provides a charge of $1 for each 100 voters in the county, 
the total not to exceed $50. For theaters the same plan is used, but $20 
is the maximum total. Incorporated cities have exclusive right to license 
shows, etc. 
