Honolulu Record, August 19, 1948, vol. 1 no. 3, p. 1

Graduated Tax Seen as Best   

When the Oahu Retail Food Dealers' Association voted last week to petition the coming legislature for a sales tax to replace the present gross income tax, the Honolulu Record spot-interviewed people on the streets for their reaction.

Almost all of the people interviewed discussed the territorial tax system openly. Practically all of them were laborers or white collar workers.

Here is their reaction:

A carpenter remarked: "I smell something fishy!"

Said an office clerk: "Maybe the retailers want clear designation of what is tax and what is not tax. At present the wholesalers and retailers are passing on to their cus­tomers as hidden sales tax what they pay for gross income tax. If sales tax is adopted it will be very simple. The customers will pay the tax and unlike now, with tax indicated on the price, the retailers will not be blamed for all of the high price markup,"

A truck driver said: "A flat gross, income tax is very bad. We poor workers shoulder the burden of this territorial revenue. But sales tax is bad also. There is a flat charge here. The poor gets soaked like the rich. What we need badly is a graduated tax system with the rich carrying their share of the tax load."

All of those interviewed were dissatisfied with the gross income tax. On remedial measures to cor­rect the "unfair" tax system, the graduated income tax received the most support.