TAX ON CORPORATIONS. Section fifteen of An Act approved May 1, 1868. That hereafter every company incorporated by or under any general or special law of this Commonwealth, except railroad, canal, turnpike, bridge, or cemetery companies, and companies incorporated for library, charitable, or religious purposes, shall pay to the State Treasurer, for the use of the Commonwealth, a bonus of one quarter of one per centum upon the amount of capital stock which said company is authorized to have, in two equal installments, and a like bonus upon any subsequent increase thereof. The first installment shall be due and payable upon the incorporation of said company, or upon the increase of the capital thereof, and the second installment one year thereafter. And no company, as aforesaid, shall have or exercise any corporate powers until the first installment of said bonus is paid; and the Governor shall not issue letters patent to any company until he is satisfied that the first installment of the said bonus has been paid to the State Treasurer; and no company, incorporated by any special act of Assembly, shall go into operation, or exercise any corporate powers or privileges, nor shall said act be enrolled among the laws of the State, until said first installment of bonus has been paid as aforesaid. The latter clause of the 15th section of the act approved May 1st, 1868, entitled "An Act to amend and consolidate the several laws taxing corporations, brokers and bankers," (Ph. L., 1868, page 113,) does apply to bills approved before May 1st, 1868, and includes all corporations not organized and in operation at that date. Act to Equalize the Taxation of Corporations and That hereafter, except in the cases of building associations, banks, savings institutions and foreign insurance companies, it shall be the duty of the president or treasurer of every company, now or hereafter incorporated by or under any law of this Commonwealth, and of every company now or hereafter incorporated by any other State and doing business in this Commonwealth, which is taxable under the laws of this State, to make report in writing to the Auditor General, annually, in the month of November, stating specifically the amount of capital paid in, the date, amount, and rate per centum of each and every dividend, made or declared by their respective corporations during the year ending with the first Monday in said month; and in all cases where any such company shall fail to make or declare any dividend upon either its common or preferred stock, during the year ending as aforesaid, or in case the dividend or dividends made or declared upon either its common or preferred stock, during the year ending as aforesaid, shall amount to less than six per centum upon the par value of the said common or preferred stock, the treasurer and secretary thereof, after being duly sworn or affirmed to do and perform the same with fidelity, according to the best of their knowledge and belief shall, between the first and fifteenth days of November of each year in which no dividend has been made or declared, as aforesaid, or in which the dividend or dividends made or declared upon either its common or preferred stock amounted to less than six per centum upon the par value of said common or preferred stock, estimate and appraise the capital stock of such company upon which no dividend has been made or declared, or upon the par value of which the dividend or dividends made or declared amounted to less than six per centum, at its actual value in cash, not less, however, than the average price which said stock sold for during said year; and when the same shall have been so truly estimated and appraised, they shall forthwith forward to the Auditor General a certificate thereof, accompained by a copy of their said oath or affirmation, by them signed, and attested by the magistrate or other person qualified to administer the same: Provided, That if the Auditor General or State Treasurer, or either of them, is not satisfied with the valuation so made and returned, they are hereby authorized and empowered to make a valuation thereof, and to settle an account on the valuation, so by them made, for the taxes, penalties, and interest due the Commonwealth thereon; any corporation or company dissatisfied with such settlement may appeal therefrom, in the manner now provided by law for appeals from the settlement of accounts by the Auditor General and State Treasurer. That if the said officers of any such corporation or company shall neglect or refuse to furnish the Auditor General, on or before the thirty-first day of December in each and every year, with the report aforesaid, or the report and appraisement, as the case may be, as required by the first section of this act, it shall be the duty of the accounting officers of the Commonwealth to add ten per centum to the tax of said corporation or company for each and every year for which such report or reports and appraisement were not so furnished, which percentage shall be settled and collected with the said tax in the usual manner of settling accounts and collecting such taxes: Provided, That if the officers of any such corporation or company shall intentionally fail to comply with the provisions of the first section of this act for three successive years, the Auditor General shall report the fact to the Governor, who, if he shall be made satisfied that such failure was intentional, shall thereupon, by proclamation, declare the charter of said corporation or company forfeited, and its chartered privileges at an end, whereupon the same shall cease, end, and be determined. That every company or association whatever now or hereafter incorporated by or under any law of this Commonwealth, or now or hereafter incorporated by any other State or country, and doing business in this Commonwealth, except building associations, banks, saving institutions, and foreign insurance companies, shall be subject to and pay into the treasury of the Commonwealth, annually a tax to be computed as follows, namely: If the dividend or dividends made or declared by such company or association, during any year ending with the first Monday in November, amount to six or more than six per centum upon the par value of its capital stock, then the tax to be at the rate of one half mill upon the capital stock for each one per centum of dividend so made or declared; if no dividend be made or declared, or if the dividend or divi dends made or declared do not amount to six per centum upon the par value of said capital stock, then the tax to be at the rate of three mills upon each dollar of a valuation of the said capital stock, made in accordance with the provisions of the first section of this act; and in case any such company or association shall have more than one kind of capital stock, as for instance, common and preferred stock, and upon one of said stocks a dividend or dividends amounting to six or more than six per centum upon the par value thereof has been made or declared, and upon the other no dividend has been made or declared or the dividend or dividends made or declared thereon amount to less than six per centum upon the par value thereof, then the tax shall be at the rate of one half mill for each one per centum of dividend made or declared upon the capital stock upon the par value of which the dividend or dividends made or declared amount to six or more than six per centum, and in addition thereto tax shall be charged at the rate of three mills upon each dollar of a valuation, made also in accordance with the provisions of the first section of this act, of the capital stock upon which no dividend was made or declared or upon the par value of which the dividend or dividends made or declared did not amount to six per centum. That it shall be the duty of the treasurer or other officer having charge of any company or association, upon which a tax is imposed by the third section of this act, to transmit the amount of said tax to the treasury of the Commonwealth, within fifteen days from the thirty-first day of December in each and every year; and if any company or association shall |