WHO PAYS?

Waikato Times, Volume 107, Issue 18030, 27 May 1930, Page 14

WHO PAYS?

STATE AND MUNICIPAL TRADING. (By Taxpayers’ Federation.) The results of the operations of the trading departments of the Dunedin City Council for the year ended on March 31, 1930, published a little while ago, showed that the municipality had managed its affairs so well that it was able to report a profit of £74,487 upon its year’s activities —an increase of £7781 upon the earnings of the previous year. The Gas Department showed a profit of £7747 —a decrease of £1597 on the return of the previous year; the Water Department a profit of £18,282 —a decrease of £2581; the Electric Power and Light Department a profit of £36,354 —an increase of £8280; the City Trams Department a profit of £8430 —an increase of £2634; the Roslyn Trams a profit of £237—an increase of £412; the Mornington Trams a profit of £3430 —an increase of £lsll, and the buses a profit of £4 —a decrease of £33. These figures go to show that the Dunedin people are very well served by their local authorities, and so far they are to be congratulated; but surely there is no sound reason why municipalities which embark upon trading operations should be exempt from such taxation and charges as would be imposed upon private individuals or corporate bodies in similar circumstances. On the whole of its trading operations during the year just closed the council made profits, according to its own returns, amounting to £74,487. In the previous year it appropriated profits running into no less than £82,268. No doubt concessions are made to the ratepayers as the profits expand—a very sound and. proper proceeding from the ratepayers’ point of view, so long as they are exempt from State taxation. If this taxation were imposed upon a sum of, say, £BO,OOO, it would amount to £IB,OOO, and so place the municipality, so far as this impost was concerned, on the same footing' as the individual or the company. Surely nothing less than that is due to the taxpayer and the State. In Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch there is the anomaly of gas companies being taxed up to the hilt by both municipal and State authorities, while in Dunedin the production and distribution of both gas and electricity escape all the impositions levied upon the other centres. It is scarcely necessary to say that this state of affairs is not due to any impropriety on the part of the good people of Dunedin. They simply saw their opportunity and turned it to account. It now remains for an alert Government to see the anomaly removed.