There shall be a common school fund, which shall consist of the poll tax (to be retained in the counties where the same is collected) and an additional sum from the general fund in the state treasury, which together shall be sufficient to maintain the common schools for the term of four months in each scholastic year. But any county or separate school district may levy an additional tax to maintain its schools longer than four months. Louisiana.-There shall be free public schools. . . . for the education of all the children of the state between the ages of six and eighteen years. . . . . All funds raised by the state for the support of the public schools, except the poll tax, shall be distributed to each parish in proportion to the number of children therein between the ages of six and eighteen years. The funds derived from the collection of the poll tax shall be applied exclusively to the maintenance of the public schools as organized under this constitution, and shall be applied exclusively to the support of the public schools in the parish in which the same shall be collected, and shall be accounted for and paid by the collecting officer directly to the treasurer of the local school board. The school funds of the state shall consist of: First, Not less than one and onequarter mills of the six-mill tax levied and collected by the state. Second, The proceeds of taxation for school purposes as provided by this constitution. Third, The interets on the proceeds of all public lands heretofore granted or to be granted by the United States for the support of the public schools, and the revenue derived from such lands as may still remain unsold. Fourth, Of lands and other property heretofore or hereafter bequeathed granted, or donated to the state for school purposes. Fifth, All funds and property, other than unimproved lands, bequeathed or granted to the state, not designated for any other purpose. Sixth, The proceeds of vacant estates falling under the law to the state of Louisiana. Seventh, The legislature may appropriate to the same fund the proceeds of public lands, not designated or set apart for any other purpose, and shall provide that every parish may levy a tax for the public schools therein, which shall not exceed the entire state tax; Provided, That with such a tax the whole amount of parish taxes shall not exceed the limits of parish taxation fixed by this constitution. .... The General Assembly shall levy an annual poll tax of one dollar upon every male inhabitant in the state between the ages of twenty-one and sixty years, for the maintenance of public schools in parishes where collected. The state tax on property for all purposes whatever, including expense of government, schools, levees, and interest, shall not exceed, in any one year, six mills on the dollar of its assessed valuation, and except as otherwise provided in this constitution, no parish, municipal, or public board tax for all purposes whatsoever, shall exceed in any one year, ten mills on the dollar valuation; Provided, That for giving additional support to public schools, and for the purpose of erecting and constructing public buildings, public schoolhouses, bridges, wharves, levees, sewerage work, and other works of permanent public improvement, the title to which shall be in the public, any parish, municipal corporation, ward, or school district may levy a special tax in excess of said limitation, whenever the rate of such increase and the number of years it is to be levied and the purposes for which the tax is intended, shall have been submitted to a vote of the property taxpayers of such parish, municipality, ward, or school district entitled to vote under the election laws of the state, and a majority of the same in number and in value voting at such election shall have voted therefor. Texas.-All funds, lands, and other property heretofore set apart and appropriated for the support of public schools, all the alternate sections of lands reserved by the state out of grants heretofore made, or that may hereafter be made, to railroads or other corporations of any nature whatsoever, one-half of the public domain of the state, and all sums of money that may come to the state from the sale of any portion of the same shall constitute a perpetual public school fund. One-fourth of the revenue derived from the state occupation taxes, and a poll tax of one dollar on every male inhabitant of this state between the ages of twenty-one and sixty years, shall be set apart annually for the benefit of public free schools, and in addition thereto there shall be levied and collected an annual ad valorem state tax of such an amount, not to exceed 20 cents on the $100 valuation, as, with the available school fund arising from all other sources, will be sufficient to maintain and support the public free schools of this state for a period of not less than six months in each year; and the legislature may also provide for the formation of school districts within all or any of the counties of this state by general or special laws. . . . and may authorize an additional annual ad valorem tax to be levied and collected within such school districts for the further maintenance of the public free schools, and the erection of school buildings therein. Provided, That two-thirds of the qualified property tax-paying voters of the district, voting at an election to be held for that purpose, shall vote such tax, not to exceed in any one year 20 cents on the $100 valuation of the property subject to taxation in such district; but the limitation upon the amount of district tax herein authorized shall not apply to incorporated cities or towns constituting separate and independent school districts. Arkansas.-The General Assembly shall provide, by general laws, for the support of common schools by taxes, which shall never exceed in any one year two mills on the dollar on the taxable property of the state; and by an annual per capita tax of one dollar, to be assessed on every male inhabitant of this state over the age of twenty-one years. Provided, That the General Assembly may, by general law, authorize school districts to levy by a vote of the qualified electors of such districts, a tax not to exceed five mills on the dollar in any one year for school purposes. Tennessee.-Knowledge, learning, and virtue being essential to the preservation of republican institutions, and the diffusion of the opportunities and advantages of education thruout the different portions of the state being highly conducive to the promotion of this end, it shall be the duty of the General Assembly, in all future periods of this government, to cherish literature and science. And the fund called the common school fund, and all the lands and proceeds thereof, dividends, stocks, and other property of every description whatever, heretofore by law appropriated by the General Assembly of this state for the use of common schools, and all such as shall hereafter be appropriated, shall remain a perpetual fund, the principal of which shall never be diminished by legislative appropriation; and the interest thereof shall be inviolably appropriated to the support and encouragement of common schools thruout the state, and for the equal benefit of all people thereof; and no law shall be made authorizing said fund or any part thereof to be diverted to any other use than the support and encouragement of common schools. The state taxes derived hereafter from polls shall be appropriated to educational purposes, in such manner as the General Assembly shall, from time to time, direct by law. . . . SUMMARY OF SCHOOL TAXATION LAWS Virginia. The state levies a general school tax of 18 cents on each $100 valuation of all property and $1.00 on each poll over twenty-one years of age. The supervisors of any county may levy as much as 50 cents on each $100 valuation of all property and $1.00 on each poll, additional to the general state tax for schools. The same authority as to additional taxation may be exercised by the town and the school district, thru their proper officials. North Carolina.-The state levies a general school tax of 18 cents on each $100 valuation of property and $1.50 on each poll between twenty-one and fifty years of age. Towns, cities, and school districts may levy, by consent of a majority of the registered voters, an additional tax of as much as 30 cents on each $100 valuation of property and 90 cents on each poll. By special statute towns and cities may acquire the right to levy as high a local school tax as a majority of the registered voters will favor. South Carolina.-The state levies a general school tax of 30 cents on each $100 valuation of property and $1.00 on each poll between twenty-one and sixty years of age. The school authorities, by a majority vote of the taxpayers of any district, may levy as much as 40 cents on each $100, additional to the state levy. Georgia. The state levies a general school tax of 17 cents on each $100 valuation of all property, and $1.00 on each poll. Any county, school district, or municipality, by a two-thirds majority of those voting may levy an additional tax for schools. Florida.-The state levies a general school tax of 10 cents on each $100 valuation of property and $1.00 on each poll. Each county, in addition, must levy as much as 30 cents on each $100 valuation of property and may levy as much as 70 cents. By a majority vote of the qualified voters of any school district as much as 30 cents on each $100 valuation of property may be levied as a local district tax, in addition to the state and county school taxes already mentioned. Mississippi.—The state has no general school tax as such. There are few limitations on counties and towns as to levying school taxes. The constitution says the poll tax and an additional sum from the state treasury shall be sufficient to maintain the public schools four months in each year. The counties and any town may, through the proper officers, levy an additional tax of 30 cents on each $100 valuation of property. If any higher tax is desired to be levied, the people must decide the amount of the tax by a majority vote. Alabama. The state levies a general school tax of 30 cents on each $100 valuation of property and $1.00 on each poll. Counties may, by a three-fifths majority of those voting at an election called for the purpose, levy an additional tax of 10 cents on each $100 valuation of property, provided the additional levy does not make the state and county tax within the year more than $1.25 on each $100 valuation of property. Cities and towns may levy such local school taxes as their charters permit. Louisiana.--Any parish (county), municipality, ward (township), or school district by a majority vote of the property, may levy any amount of local tax for schools. There is no limitation. The state levies a general tax of 20 cents on cach $100 of property. Texas. The state levies a general school tax of 18 cents on each $100 valuation of property and $1.00 on each poll. School districts, by a two-thirds majority of the property tax-paying voters, may levy an additional tax of 20 cents on each $100 valuation of property. Incorporated cities and towns and independent districts may levy such local school taxes as their charters permit. Arkansas.-The state levies a general school tax of 20 cents on each $100 valuation of all property and $1.00 on each poll. Any school district in its annual district school meeting, composed of the qualified voters of the school district, may levy as much as 50 cents additional on each $100 valuation of all property. Tennessee. The state levies a general school tax of 15 cents on each $100 valuation of all property and $1.00 on each poll. The county, thru its county court, may levy an addtional school tax on each $100 valuation of all property, amounting in the aggregate to the sum of the whole state and county tax for all purposes, and an additional poll tax of $1.00 on each poll. A county high-school tax of as much as 15 cents may be levied. This tax is additional to any taxes mentioned above. Incorporated towns may levy such special local school taxes as their charters permit. COMPARATIVE RECEIPTS FOR SCHOOLS Remembering the facts disclosed by the preceding tables, it will be interesting to see how much North Carolina is doing in the matter of raising funds for education. The figures for North Carolina do not include the local taxes levied in about 180 districts. If the true amount of these taxes could be added to the above receipts for North Carolina, the result would doubtless show that North Carolina is now raising on every dollar of true valuation as much as is being raised in the country at large, though her per capita ability, in 1900, would indicate that only about one-third as much could be raised for schools by an equal amount of taxation as could be raised in the country at large. It should be remembered, however, that the assessed valuation of property in North Carolina is not $847,015,094, but $433,687,809, about one-half the value estimated above, based on an increase of 45 per cent. between 1890 and 1900. It is doubtful whether the present true valuation of all the property of North Carolina is as much as $847,015,094, because North Carolina property hardly increased as much as 45 per cent. in true valuation between 1890 and 1900. The table which follows, however, will show the present inethod of raising school funds in North Carolina and the relation of such taxation to all other taxation, local taxes for schools not being included: PROPERTY VALUATION AND GENERAL SCHOOL TAXES LEVIED BY NORTH CAROLINA IN 1903 Total school taxes levied......1,296,824.22 *The poll tax levied on each male between 21 and 50 years of age must be the same as the property tax on $300 worth of property. On social clubs' license.. On grain distilleries... Fines, etc.... Other sources.. The above figures are compiled from the latest report of the State Auditor of North Carolina. The valuation of property is the assessed valuation, which is considered to be about 60 per cent. of the true valuation. TOTAL TAXES LEVIED BY NORTH CAROLINA IN 1903 State taxes (state government, pensions, etc.)... School taxes (general, not including local).. Total taxes levied..... .$1,120,644.88 2,127,456.88 1,296,824.22 .$4,544,925.98 The above table shows that the general school taxes in 1903 were in excess of all the taxes levied for the maintenance of the state government by $176,179.34, and that the general school taxes of the state, excluding local taxes in 230 towns and local tax districts amounting to about $400,000 more annually, were 29 per cent. of all the taxes levied in the state for the year 1903. OTHER STATE SUPPORT OF SCHOOLS Besides the taxes already referred to as levied and spent for schools, the state of North Carolina expends annually the following sums for education out of the general revenues of the state: In addition to the above annual appropriations the state expends annually large sums for permanent improvements at the several institutions named. PERCENTAGE OF STATE TAXES DEVOTED TO SCHOOLS IN NORTH CAROLINA Total amount of state, school, and county taxes. Percentage of taxes devoted to schools.... $4,544,925.98 1,730,324.22 38 per cent. 62 per cent. Percentage of taxes devoted to all other purposes, county and state.. The local school taxes of cities, towns and local tax districts are not included in the above calculations. PART III. RESULTS OF TWENTY YEARS' PROGRESS IN DECREASING ILLITERACY The following pages contain a comparative statement of the results achieved in decreasing illiteracy in North Carolina, in the South, and in the country at large during the twenty years between 1880 and 1900. *Funds from U. S. Government not included. |