COMPARISON OF CONSTITUTIONS

	PROPOSED CONSTITUTION OF 1968	CONSTITUTION OF 1867
	purposes and only by the elected representa-	be rated or levied, under any pretence,
	tives of the people exercising legislative pow-	without the consent of the Legislature.
	ers.
	Section 6.02. Local Taxing Power.	Art. III, sec. 51. The personal prop-
	All units of local government shall retain,	erty of residents of this State, shall be
	unless withdrawn by the General Assembly	subject to taxation in the county or city
	by law, those taxing powers that they have	where the resident bona fide resides for the
	at the effective date of this Constitution.	greater part of the year for which the tax
	Taxing powers may be granted or withdrawn	may or shall be levied, and not elsewhere,
	by the General Assembly by law applicable	except goods and chattels permanently
	to all municipal corporations or by law ap-	located, which shall be taxed in the city or
	plicable to one or more of the other popu-	county where they are so located, but the
	larly elected representative local governments.	General Assembly may by law provide for
		the taxation of mortgages upon property in
		this State and the debts secured thereby,
		in the county or city where such property
		is situated.
	Section 6.03. Assessments.	Declaration of Rights, Art. 15. That the
	Assessments with respect to any tax shall	levying of taxes by the poll is grievous and
	be made pursuant to uniform rules and pur-	oppressive, and ought to be prohibited; that
	suant to classifications of property, taxpayers, and events prescribed by law, which classes shall include agricultural property as defined by the General Assembly by law.	paupers ought not to be assessed for the support of the Government; that the Gen- eral Assembly shall, by uniform rules, pro- vide for the separate assessment, classifica- tion and sub-classification of land, improve-
		ments on land and personal property, as it
		may deem proper; and all taxes thereafter
		provided to be levied by the State for the
		support of the general State Government,
		and by the Counties and by the City of
		Baltimore for their respective purposes,
		shall be uniform within each class or sub-
		class of land, improvements on land and
		personal property which the respective
		taxing powers may have directed to be sub-
		jected to the tax levy; yet fines, duties or
		taxes may properly and justly be imposed,
		or laid with a political view for the good
		government and benefit of the community.
		Declaration of Rights, Art. 43..... The
		Legislature may provide that land actively
		devoted to farm or agricultural use shall be
		assessed on the basis of such use and shall
		not be assessed as if subdivided.
	Section 6.04. Equalization.	See Declaration of Rights, Art. 15 at Sec-
	The State shall prescribe and administer	tion 6.03 for equalization.
	uniform rules and methods for determining
	property tax assessments. State funds distrib-
	uted to units of local government on the ba-
	sis of assessments of property shall be deter-
	mined by assessments equalized among those
	units, as prescribed by the General Assembly
	by law.

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