PETROL TAXATION.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LII, Issue 69, 20 February 1932, Page 7

PETROL TAXATION.

POSITION EXAMINED.

MOTOR UNION REPORT 1 .

Per Press Association. NATIONAL PARK, Feb. 9. ‘‘There are repeated rumours that the. Main Highways Board funds will be receiving a bigger raid than previously and it has even been suggested that recommendations wEI come from the Treasury that the operations of the board should be restricted to practically nil on account of the financial conditions,” said Mr G. W. Hutchison, an Auckland delegate to the half-yearly meeting of the North Island Motor Union to-day. During the year ended December 31, 1930, 68,309,072 gaUons of petrol were imported into the Dominion,” said the report of the secretary, which was adopted by the meeting. In the year ended December 31, 1932, imports had dropped to 61,844,702 gallons, which quantity was- of a declared value of £1,343,306, equalling 4.8 pence per gallon. The present tax and surtax on petrol equal 8.4 pence per gallon. We therefore have a declared value of 4.8 pence per gallon, and the tax and surtax of 8.4 pence per gallon. That equals a tax of 175 per cent on the declared value of petrol and over 200 per ceiit on an ad valorem basis. A duty of 200 per cent ad valorem is an extraordinarily high rate of duty. This is bad enough in itself. The situation becomes infinitely worse if examined in the light of what has happened to the road funds during the year ended December 31, 1931, and what appears likely to happen during the year ending December 31, 1932, if last .year’s legislation is not modified. Petrol tax collected’ during the year ended December 31, 1931 (excluding surtax £81,607, and the additional 2d per gallon imposed by the Supplementary Budget, which, during _ the short period it was , iA force, yielded; £118,072) amounted t0'£1,517,982: less rebates' made through the 'Post Office £132,790: less the cost’of making the rebate £2,637; less the cost of collecting the tax (retained by the Customs Department and calculated at the rate qf £1 3s 8d per cent.) £17,190, thus making the total £152,617 and leaving the amount actually received by the Main Highways Board at £1,365,365. This £1,365,365 was subjected to a number of deductions and charges;, leaving for the Main Highways Board £749,345. ’ . ■ ' ' - The position that has arisen from last year’s legislation is one that must give motorists grave cause for concern. £749,000 equals 2.9 pence per gallon when devided by the number of gallonsof petrol imported, so that the roads fund is now worse off by_ more than one penny per gallon than it was when the petrol tax was only 4d per gallon.