Ray's New Higher Arithmetic · Arts. 279–284 · Unit 16: Percentage: Applications without Time (continued)
75. Taxes
Goal: Your student explains direct and indirect taxes and finds a tax, a tax rate, or the value of taxable property, using a tax table when given.
You'll need
- The book
- A slate, small whiteboard or scrap paper
- A notebook and pencil
What's in the book
Section VII, Taxes: definitions (tax, direct and indirect, poll-tax, property tax, real and personal property, assessor, collector), then four cases, a tax table at 1¼%, and examples. Answers are printed.
The lesson, step by step
Warm-up
Ask: Who pays for roads, schools and the town's fire company? Where does that money come from?
The idea
Read:
A Tax is a sum of money levied on persons, or on persons and property, for public use.
A Direct Tax is one which is levied on the person or property of the individual.
A Poll-Tax, or Capitation Tax, is a direct tax levied on each male citizen liable to taxation.
A Property Tax is a direct tax levied on property.
How rates were written
Read:
The rate of taxation being usually small, is expressed most conveniently as so many cents on $100, or as so many mills on $1.
Say78 cents on $100 is the same as .78%, or 7.8 mills on $1. (A mill is a tenth of a cent.)
Work the book's example
Case I: taxable property × rate = tax.
A's property is assessed at $3800; the rate of taxation is 96 ct. on $100; what is his whole tax, if he pays a poll-tax of $1?
$3800 × .0096 = $36.48; with the poll-tax, $37.48.
Using the tax table
Read:
To find the tax on any sum by the table, take out the tax on each figure of the sum, and add the results.
Work the book's example, $25349 at 1¼%: $250 + $62.50 + $3.75 + $.50 + $.1125 = $316.86.
Cases II to IV
Case II: tax ÷ property = rate. Case III: tax ÷ rate = property. Read the note:
If any part of the tax arises from polls, it should be first deducted from the given tax.
Try together:
Property assessed at $2604, pays $19.53 tax: what is the rate of taxation?
Independent practice and check
Your student works examples from each case and checks the printed answers.
Wrap-up
Ask: Is a tax on tea or tobacco direct or indirect? (Indirect: it is paid by whoever buys the goods.)
Afterwards
Two sittings: definitions and Case I with the table, then Cases II to IV.
Tip
In 1880 the poll-tax fell only on men. You might mention that many states have since dropped it.