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2. Tonnage-tax collections at the various ports during the fiscal year ending June 30, 1894.

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2. Tonnage-tax collections at the various ports, etc.-Continued.

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SUMMARY OF STATE LAWS IMPOSING TAXES ON SHIPPING. Following is a brief and necessarily incomplete statement of the tax laws of the States on the coast and on the Great Lakes, in so far as they affect shipping, compiled from the responses of secretaries of State and other State officers, collectors of customs at principal ports, and local boards of assessors, whose courtesy is appreciated and hereby acknowledged by this Bureau. The substance of the laws is stated as concisely as possible. It should be borne in mind that in some of the States more or less complicated schemes of corporation tax laws are in force, which apply to corporations owning shipping as well as to other corporations. No effort has been made to reproduce in this report the provisions of such laws, on account of their intricacy and of the space they would require, the object of this digest being to give a general view of the disposition of the several States toward shipping, as manifested in their respective tax laws, rather than to set forth in full detail all the laws bearing upon the subject.

Attention is directed particularly to the laws of New York, Massachusetts, and Connecticut, and to the statement of the auditor-general of Pennsylvania. Where the replies to the requests of this Burean have been accompanied by statements of the State officers, collector of customs, or local assessors, which appeared especially pertinent or significant, they have been reproduced.

The States are arranged in the order of customs districts, beginning at Maine, down the Atlantic and gulf coasts, up the Pacific, and through the Great Lakes.

MAINE.

Maine taxes all classes of vessels as personal property, making no distinction between those engaged in foreign and in domestic trade.

The collector of customs at Portland states:

"The custom is to value such property at about what it would sell for at a forced sale or under the hammer, and at the present time in Portland the practice, which does not differ materially, as I understand it, from any other portion of the State, is to assess new vessel property-that is, such as has been built two years-at the rate of $31 a ton, deducting from that rate $2 a ton for each year of age after the second year to the eighth, thereafter deducting $1 for each additional year of age until the valuation is reduced to $5, when, if for any reason it falls below that point, it is no longer assessed for purposes of taxation. Meanwhile if there has been any special or unusual cause of depreciation, as a serious accident at sea, that is taken into consideration and a reduction for purposes of taxation is made accordingly."

The assessors of Bangor state:

"The major part of the navigation now hailing from this port is old-some of it very old-and the value is nearly or quite nominal. We follow practically the methods of Portland and Bath, and probably our valuation is not more than twothirds of what the property could be bought for, though we doubt whether it 'pays' upon even our figures."

The assessors of Bath state:

"The assessed valuation we propose is about a fair cash valuation, taking old vessels and new; the older vessels we value rather above, the new ones rather below, cash value; but one compensates the other, we think. ** A tax is levied on the capital stock of corporations owning vessel property-consisting in our city of ferryboats, tugboats, and steamers-that is, stock owned here. Of course, large amounts of these stocks are owned by nonresidents-these we can not reach; we do not base our tax in any case upon the earnings of vessels."

NEW HAMPSHIRE.

New Hampshire, by its public statutes, chapter 55, section 7, regards fishing vessels, steamboats, horse boats, or other vessels owned by individuals, navigating the waters of the State, and sea-going vessels for the transportation of passengers and freight, for the purposes of taxation, as stock in trade, and taxable as such.

MASSACHUSETTS.

Massachusetts taxes all classes of vessels as personal property, making a discrimination, however, in favor of those engaged in foreign trade.

Sections 8 and 10 of the Compilation of the Laws of the Commonwealth provides: "SEC. 8. Ships and vessels engaged in the foreign carrying trade shall not, for the purposes of taxation, be included in the personal estate of persons to be taxed; but the net yearly income of such ships or vessels shall be taxed to the owner or owners thereof in their places of residence proportionally to their interests therein. No ship or vessel, unless actually engaged in such trade, or in port undergoing repairs, shall be deemed to be engaged in said trade within the meaning of this section.

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"SEC. 10. The assessors of any city or town may, on or before the first day of September in any year before the year eighteen hundred and eighty-seven, make a return, under oath, to the tax commissioner, showing the amount of its taxable valuation on the preceding first day of May, the fair cash value of the ships and vessels returned to them in said year under the preceding section, the net income therefrom so returned, the rate of tax on each one thousand dollars in said year, and the increase in said rate arising under the provisions of the two preceding sections; and the commissioners shall thereupon credit to the city or town, as a set-off to any tax or other payment to be made by it to the treasurer of the commonwealth, an amount equal to an assessment of said increase in the rate of tax upon the amount of said taxable valuation."

RHODE ISLAND.

Rhode Island taxes all classes of vessels as personal property, making no distinc tion between those engaged in foreign and in domestic trade.

Chapter 39, section 10, of the general statutes of Rhode Island reads: "Personal property for the purposes of taxation shall be deemed to include all ships or vessels at home or abroad."

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CONNECTICUT.

Connecticut taxes all classes of vessels as personal property, making a discrimination, however, in favor of those engaged in foreign trade, which are taxed at a valuation equal to their net earnings during the year preceding the levy of the tax. The provisions of the State law were enacted May 27, 1889, and are as follows: "SEC. 3828. Personal property in this State or elsewhere, not exempt by this title, shall, for the purpose of taxation, include all notes, bonds, and stocks, not issued by the United States, moneys, credits, choses in action, and all vessels, except registered and enrolled sailing vessels and barges engaged in trade between this and other States, also registered vessels which are actually engaged in foreign commerce, goods, chattels, or effects, or any interest therein, and such property belonging to any resident in this State shall be set in his list in the town where he resides at its then actual valuation, except when otherwise provided;

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SEC. 3829. Registered and enrolled sailing vessels, barges engaged in trade between this and other States, and also registered vessels which are actually engaged in foreign commerce, shall be assessed at a valuation equal to their net earnings during the year ending on the first day of the preceding July, and any interest in such vessel shall be assessed at such proportion of said value as said interest bears to the whole vessel, and the managing owner or, in case he is not a resident of this State, the owner, shall exhibit to the assessors a statement of the net earnings, and, if required, of the earnings and expenses of said vessel during said year, and answer any proper questions touching the same which may be put to him. All vessels pro

pelled by steam, except those actually engaged in foreign commerce, unrigged vessels, except barges engaged in trade between this and other States, and pleasure yachts shall be assessed under the preceding section, and the provisions of this section shall not apply to them, but in computing the net earnings of a vessel no sum shall be deducted from the earnings for insurance.

NEW YORK.

In 1881, by act of the legislature, all registered vessels and all earnings of registered-vessel property were exempted from all taxes for State and local purposes for fifteen years, and on May 17, 1892, this exemption was extended for a period of thirty years. The provisions of the law now in force are:

"SECTION 1. All vessels registered at any port in this State and owned by any American citizen or association, or by any corporation incorporated under the laws of the State of New York, engaged in ocean commerce between any port in the United States and any foreign port, are exempted from all taxation in this State for State and local purposes; and all such corporations, all of whose vessels are employed between foreign ports and ports in the United States, are exempted from all taxation in this State for State and local purposes upon their capital stock, franchises, and earnings for the period of thirty years."

In 1878 an act was passed exempting all vessels enrolled, licensed, and engaged in the coasting trade from taxation, but this sweeping exemption was repealed the following year. Corporations operating vessels in domestic trade are taxed under the State corporation tax laws, and vessels owned by individuals in the domestic trade are subject to taxation as other property.

NEW JERSEY.

New Jersey, by the statement of the secretary of the State board of taxation, regards vessels as personal property for the purposes of taxation.

Vessel property is not assessed at the port of entry or town from which the vessel sails, but to the owner at the place where he lives. The vessel is divided into shares; then each owner of the shares in that vessel must pay taxes on the full value of his shares in the township where he resides.

PENNSYLVANIA.

In this State, by the statement of the auditor-general:

"There is no tax upon either vessels or vessel owners, eo nomine. When vessels are owned by corporations, and are employed in carrying on transportation wholly within the State, then the capital stock representing the value of such vessels is taxable at the same rate as the capital stock of other companies. If used in interstate traffic the capital invested in them is not so taxed. They are not taxed directly in any way, under any circumstances.

"If such vessels are engaged in transportation wholly within the State, and are owned by a corporation, limited partnership, or joint stock association, then the gross receipts derived from such traffic are taxed to the company or association owning the vessels, for State purposes, at the rate of 8 mills on the dollar of such receipts. If the vessels are engaged in interstate or international navigation, the gross receipts derived therefrom are not taxable. (See Commonwealth v. Philadelphia and Southern S. S. Co., 122 U. S. Reps., 326.) The gross receipts earned by vessels owned by individuals are not taxable under any circumstances. The twenty-third section of the act of 1889 provides for the taxation of the gross receipts of transportation companies, and the fifth section of the act of 1891 provides for the taxation of the capital stock of corporations. These are the only provisions of law under which vessels and their receipts are taxed, directly or indirectly."

MARYLAND.

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Maryland taxes all classes of vessels as personal property, making no distinction between those engaged in foreign and in domestic trade.

The general revenue tax law of the State (January, 1878) provides: "SEC. 2. All interests, shares, or proportions owned by residents of this State, in all ships or other vessels, registered in a port of Maryland, whether such ships or other vessels be in or out of port, etc., shall be liable to the respective owners thereof and to be assessed and taxed as the property of such respective owners."

The collector of customs at Baltimore states:

"I am not prepared to state what effect, if any, such exaction has on the American carrying trade; I am rather inclined to believe it has none. It has, however, this

effect, that vessels built or owned by Maryland citizens, in order to escape this taxation, will transfer a trifling portion of it to a citizen of another State where such taxation does not obtain, and have the vessel hail from a port in that State, thus escaping assessment here."

DELAWARE.

Delaware imposes no tax of any kind on vessels as property.

VIRGINIA.

Virginia taxes all classes of vessels as personal property, making no distinction between those engaged in foreign and in domestic trade.

By the act of 1893-'94 owners, whether corporations or individuals, are required to list, for the purpose of taxation, as personal property:

"The number of boats or water crafts under five tons burthen and the aggregate value thereof; the number of all ships, tugboats, barges, boats, or other water crafts of five tons burthen and over, and all other floating property not required by section twenty-one of this act, to be assessed by the board of public works, and the aggregate value thereof, with their tackle, rigging, and furniture and all else that pertains to them, or of any share or interest in such owned by any person in Virginia, though the said ships, or any of them, may not be, at the time when the assessment was made, in the waters of Virginia."

The Virginia commissioner of revenue at Norfolk states:

"The steamship companies plying between Norfolk and other ports are assessed and pay a tax to the auditor of public accounts in Richmond, Va., direct, and this tax is in lieu of all other taxes."

NORTH CAROLINA.

North Carolina taxes all classes of vessels as personal property, making no distinction between those engaged in foreign and in domestic trade. The rate of taxation at present (April 19, 1894) is 84 cents upon $100 valuation. The State also imposes a tax of 1 per cent upon the gross receipts of any steamboat company incorporated under the laws of the State, doing business in the State, by its revenue machinery

act of 1893.

The tax ordinances for the city of Wilmington imposes a tax of $5.50 a month on each marine railway or floating dock; and a tax of $5.50 a month on ship brokers and agents for steamships and steamboats.

SOUTH CAROLINA.

South Carolina taxes all classes of vessels as personal property, making no distinction between those engaged in foreign and in domestic trade.

In addition, the city of Charleston established on January 20, 1894, an elaborate license system by which a fee of $500 is required of every steamship agency or company; $50 for each steamboat; $200 for every lightering company; $150 for agencies of steamships other than regular lines; $50 for sailing vessel companies or agencies; $50 for marine shipyards, ship or dry docks; $25 for each steam tug; $50 for eacli sailors' boarding house, etc.

GEORGIA.

Georgia taxes all vessels as personal property, making no distinction between those engaged in foreign and in domestic trade.

Section 14 of the act of December, 1892, provides:

"That any person or company, resident of this State, who is owner of a vessel, boats, or water craft of any description, shall answer under oath the number of vessels, boats, and other water crafts owned by them and the value of each, and make returns of the same to the tax receiver of the county of the residence of such person or company, and the same shall be taxed as other property is taxed." The listing system obtains in this State.

The collector of customs at Savannah states:

"The State tax varies from year to year, though not materially. The rate for 1891 was $11.38 per thousand; for 1892, $11.10 per thousand; for 1893, $10.09 per thousand. The rate of the city tax is 14 per cent."

The city of Savannah has a scheme of municipal license fees, among which may be noted: A charge of $50 on every steamboat, vessel, or other agency, and $100 on every agency for ocean steamships, for each line; every exporter of cotton, lumber, naval stores, or other merchandise, foreign or coastwise, or agency, or representative of firm of exporters, is required to pay an annual license of $200; every shipmaster, captain, supercargo, agent, or other officer of any ship or vessel, or other persons who

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