American Agriculturist, March 8, 1924 
Gov. Smith Answers A. A. Tax Petition 
Replies To Farm Tax Reduction Demands Sent In By Our Subscribers 
American Agriculturist 
461 Fourth Avenqe 
New York City 
Gentlemen: 
There has been forwarded to me a copy of 
a petition appearing in your paper entitled 
'‘Chance for Effective Action.” The copy which 
was sent me was signed by Mr. Adelbert Hall 
of Hannibal, New York, and I have addressed 
the enclosed reply to Mr. Hall. This reply is in 
the form of an open letter and I am giving pub¬ 
licity to it in the daily press and the agricultural 
papers of the State. I trust that you will give 
this reply the same prominence that you have 
given to your petition. 
Appreciating your cooperation, I am, 
Sincerely yours, 
(Signed) ALFRED E. SMITH. 
Executive Chamber 
Albany, New York. 
Mr. Adelbert Hall, 
R. D. 1, 
Hannibal, New York. 
Dear Sir: 
I am in receipt of a communication signed by 
you and what appears to be three members of 
your family, consisting of a petition appearing 
in the American Agriculturist and 
which is addressed as a petition to 
“The Governor, the Legislature, and 
to every other public official in State, 
County and Town Government in 
the States of New York, Pennsylvania 
and New Jersey.” 
As Governor of New York State, and 
one of the officials addressed, I desire 
to place before you and, through the 
public press, before others who may 
sign such petitions certain facts which 
being unknown to you may therefore 
have caused you to sign this petition 
which I must interpret as your own 
expression. 
I wish to take up especially those 
sections of the petition and resolution 
which deal with the underlying causes 
of high taxation and which after all 
are equal, if not greater in importance, 
than the method by which taxation is 
imposed. If we can make sufficient 
impression on the, causes for high 
taxes, all methods of taxation will feel 
the downward pressure. 
Your resolution says: 
“WHEREAS, fourth, our national. State and 
local governments have made little real 
progress in cutting out unnecessary offi¬ 
cers, government departments and ap¬ 
propriation bills since the end of the World 
War, therefore be it hereby 
‘RESOLVED:—First, that we, the under¬ 
signed, are unalterably OPPOSED TO 
THE EXTENSION AT PRESENT OF 
ALL NATIONAL, STATE AND LOCAL 
GOVERNMENTAL ACTIVITIES. 
Second, that all of our national and local 
officers should give immediate attention to 
THE GRAVE NECESSITY OF LARGE 
REDUCTIONS IN ALL GOVERNMENT 
EXPENDITURES, to the reduction of 
government personnel, to combining and 
simplifying government departments and 
activities, to the need of short legislative 
sessions, to smaller expense accounts for 
public officials, to passing fewer laws, and in 
short, to the necessity for practicing the 
same economy in public affairs that farmers 
are constantly obliged to practice in the 
production of the necessities of life. 
Third, that we as farmers are not interested in credit 
or any other unsound farm relief legislation, BUT IN 
TAX REDUCTION.” 
On these points, I not only agree with you thor¬ 
oughly, but since I was first elected Governor in 
1918, I have made every endeavor to secure those 
basic reforms in government which will cut out 
those same “unnecessary officer^ and government 
departments” and thus reduce the appropriation 
bills about which you complain. 
Are you familiar with my program for the reor¬ 
ganization of the‘State Government? It provides 
for a reduction of the 187 miscellaneous boards, 
commissions and other agencies of the government, 
to twenty departments, each headed by a com¬ 
missioner appointed by the Governor, and it also 
provides for the short ballot. To complete such a 
program, it is necessary also to establish an execu¬ 
tive budget which will place responsibility for 
government expenditures squarely where it be¬ 
longs, on the Executive of the State, the Governor. 
This will in itself do away with the many evils 
now inherent in our present system of making 
appropriations which is now so confused and 
irresponsible that no executive responsibility is 
possible.. The present system which is by legis¬ 
lative initiative and without regard to what the 
Governor may or may not consider adequate, 
keeps the way open for log-rolling, extravagance, 
waste and inefficiency. The executive budget 
proposes that the Governor shall submit to the 
Legislature at the opening of the session, a budget 
outlining the possible income of the State, the 
estimated revenues and beside it, the requirements 
for the maintenance of the government. Upon 
request of either house of the Legislature, the 
Governor must appear before it and explain the 
budget. The Legislature may strike out any item 
from the budget or may reduce any item in it, 
but the Legislature is prohibited from adding any 
item. After provision is made for the support of 
government by this main appropriation bill, the 
Legislature may make any other appropriations 
it sees fit, subject to the veto of the Governor as 
now provided in the Constitution. 
It is also apparent that the term of the Governor 
should be lengthened from two to four years in 
order that he may accomplish what he initiates 
and be in office long enough to understand his job. 
. Pending these reforms which require constitu¬ 
tional amendment to accomplish, some progress 
can be made by legislation which will abolish 
some unnecessary activities of the State and 
consolidate others, thus wiping out duplication 
and waste. 
Do you know the history of these reforms in 
this State? In 1920, I presented this program to 
the Legislature and it passed for the first time. 
In 1921, while I was not Governor, it failed 
to pass the second time because of Republican 
opposition and therefore was lost. In 1922, 
I made this program an issue in my campaign 
for the governorship, and in 1923, I again pre¬ 
sented it to the Legislature. Again they passed 
the consolidation and short ballot amend¬ 
ments but up to this date, the Republican 
Assembly has refused to permit the 
people of the State to vote on the pro¬ 
posal for an executive budget or the 
four-year term for the Governor. 
Some progress is being made in consoli¬ 
dation by statute and wherever it has 
been put into effect, it has resulted in 
immediate 1 economies. Since this 
method has already resulted in “large 
reductions in all government expendi¬ 
tures,” such as your resolution desires, 
and in “the reduction of government 
personnel” and will undoubtedly con- , 
tribute to “combining and simplifying 
government departments and activi¬ 
ties, to the need of short legislative 
sessions, to smaller, expense accounts 
for public officials, to passing fewer 
laws, and in short, to the necessity for 
practicing the same economy in public 
affairs that farmers are constantly 
obliged to practice in the production 
of the necessities of life,” do you not 
believe that you should exercise every 
effort to influence your representative 
in the Assembly and the Speaker of the 
Assembly to carry out these funda¬ 
mental reforms which will result in re¬ 
duction of taxes by urging them to vote 
for the executive budget and further 
consolidations of State government. 
I have asked the Legislature to 
scrutinize carefully every appropria¬ 
tion so that we may administer the 
government with the utmost economy 
and if this is accomplished, it may be 
possible to secure reductions in taxa¬ 
tion in addition to those already pro¬ 
posed, which will rejoice no one more 
than myself, since I realize thoroughly 
that the farmer and every other ulti¬ 
mate consumer carries the real burden. 
I hope to have enlisted your CO' 
operation in reducing the cost of 
government by explaining to you the 
causes pf its high cost and the real 
way to control them, and that you 
will address the Speaker and your 
Assemblyman urging them to vote 
for these measures. 
Very truly yours, 
(Signed) Alfred E. Smith. 
, If you believe in tax reduction sign the 'petition below, get your neighbor 
to sign it, and send it IMMEDIATELY to American Agriculturist, 
461 Fourth Avenue, New York City. 
TO THE GOVERNOR, THE LEGISLATURE, AND TO EVERY 
OTHER PUBLIC OFFICIAL IN STATE, COUNTY AND TOWN 
GOVERNMENT IN NEW YORK, PENNSYLVANIA AND NEW 
JERSEY. 
WHEREAS, first,'taxation has increased in this nation more thanfour times 
since 1913, and in our State and local governments more than three and a half 
times, and 
WHEREAS, second, this burden of taxation, particularly for State and local 
governments, falls heaviest and directly on farmers and farm property, amounting 
to 16.6% of the farmer’s income in 1922, stopping agricultural prosperity and 
fast becoming absolutely insupportable, and 
WHEREAS, third, the general basis of taxation is INCOME and not PROPERTY 
and 
- fj 
WHEREAS, fourth, our national, State and local governments have made little 
real progress in cutting out unnecessary officers, government departments and 
appropriation bills since the end of the World War, therefore be it hereby 
RESOLVED: First, that we, the undersigned, are unalterably OPPOSED TO 
THE EXTENSION AT PRESENT OF ALL NATIONAL, STATE AND LOCAL GOV¬ 
ERNMENT ACTIVITIES. 
Second, that all of our national and local officers should give immediate at¬ 
tention to THE GRAVE NECESSITY OF LARGE REDUCTIONS IN ALL GOV¬ 
ERNMENT EXPENDITURES, to the reduction of government personnel, :o com¬ 
bining and simplifying government departments and activities, to the need of 
short legislative sessions, to smaller expense accounts for public officials, to 
passing fewer laws, and in short, to the necessity for practicing the same economy 
in public affairs that farmers are constantly obliged to practice in the production 
of the necessities of life. 
Third, that we as farmers are not interested in credit or any other unsound 
farm rejief legislation, BUT IN TAX REDUCTION. 
Fourth, that taxation, both State and national, be maintained on-all luxuries* 
as for example, chewing gum, tobacco, motion pictures, etc. 
Fifth, that tax reduction be made TO ABOLISH DIRECT PROPERTY TAX. 
A REDUCTION OF INCOME TAXES IS NOT SATISFACTORY. The farmer’s 
► income is from his property holdings and therefore his assessed valuation, par¬ 
ticularly on paper, is high.-- The reduction of income taxes, while government 
expenditures are still so high, will inevitably result in greater taxes on property, 
ohiefly FARM REAL ESTATE. Signed eventually by 100,000 farmers. 
Name (write plainly) 
Address . 
; (Paste blank paper to this petition for additional names.) 
