Published once 3 week at Palmer) Alaska for the Mntanuska Valley Farmers’
Cooperating Association for the purpose of giving news of the Associations
work, problems and accomplishments.
ALASKA BUSldESS LI LEASE ACT
During the last week many of the farmers in the Matanuska Valley have become a
cquainted with a new License Tax that -vent into effect on the first of this year
(1950). On Tuesday evening, Mr. Moore of Anchorage, the Deputy Collector for the
Territorial Department of Taxation visited the Grange meeting in Wasilla and ex
plained the rules and regulations governing the new act of the Legislature passed
at the last session. It was a surprise to the Grangers that they were subject to
the Tax and also to the Deputy Collector that the people didn't know about the law.
Practically speaking the Tax is imposed for the purpose of engaging in business in
the Territory, it is the kind of a tax that penalizes people who are trying to de
velop the country or promote new business activities that are $o important in a
new country like the Territory of Alaska. It means that every new veteran home
steader who trys to develop his farm and sell the small amount that he can pro
duce on his limited acres cleared for cultivation, will have to pay ^25.00 to the
Territory for the privilege of trying to make himself self-supporting . No doubt
he will be eligible to receive aid from the Territory if he can not make enough
to make a living on his farm, but it seems to us that it would be better to allow
him to develop his farm business ^/ithout this diversion of his funds, and become
self-supporting.
We hear that legislators who voted for the new tax bill and who are identified
with the people who were sponsors of the legislation stated, when asked about the
intents of the bill, "that it was never intended that farmers would be included in
the people who were to pay the tax"; however, the advice of these politicians is
to pay the tax, with the promise that it will bo amended or repealed in the next
session of the legislature. This is fine but suppose that the majority of the
next legislature are not in accord ./ith these gentlemen, then what?
It is well to remember that this is a new tax and that it has not been tested in
the courts as yet. The wording of the law is like so many of the laws passed by
the Territorial legislature in the last few years, it cbes not specifically state
just who is liable for payment of this tax except, in general terms. The actual
definition of the terms of the act have teen written by Territorial officials, and
if any one wishes to do so, a test case could be started that might eliminate the
law entirely. There has been talk by some people in the Valley that this might be
the proper course of action. There is going to be an investigation of the legal
ity of the act by prominent Attorneys for some of the farmers in this vicinity.
No one •' connected with the Co-op is advising any one to pay or not to ray, that
is up to the individual and it right be well to state that the penalty for evasion
of the lav; can be up to six months in jail or a dl,000 fine or both, this would
not be a pleasant thing to look forward to. To those who wish to pay the tax,this
information is important, it can be paid at the U. S. Commissioner's office in
Palmer. Applications are available there and they -./ill take your money. There
are several other questions that are interesting to Cooperative members that will
be gone into in the future. As it stands now it seems like there may be double
taxation in some cases for Co-op members, this should bo investigated before the
t?: is paid, it is also notable to mention that when a business becomes very large
it does r.ot have to pay : much in porportion as the smaller business men do.,
This is another questionable feature that is not unusual however.
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W VA. \i_/C_vL/y -
EGG PRICES RAISED
Co-op ops Chocks will be paid this week cn the basis of
85 cents p^r doz. This is a raise of 5 cents per dozen
over last weeks price.
Snail deeds done are better th^n great deeds planned