Section 6. The State Treasurer may designate one bank in Dauphin county, two banks in Philadelphia county and two banks in Allegheny county, to be known as active banks in which shall be deposited a sufficient amount of the daily receipts to transact the current business of the Commonwealth. These active banks shall be required to make all collections for the Commonwealth, without cost or compensation, and shall be required to pay interest at the rate of one and one-half per centum, per annum, on all daily balances. BUILDING AND LOAN ASSOCIATION STOCKS. ACT OF JUNE 22, 1897, P. L., p. 178. Section 1. Be it enacted, &c., That upon all full paid, prepaid, and fully matured or partly matured stock in any building and loan association incorporated under the laws of this State, or incorporated under the laws of any other state and doing business within this State, and upon which annual, semi-annual, quarterly or monthly cash dividends or interest shall be paid, there shall be paid a State tax equal to that required to be paid upon money at interest by the general tax laws of this State; such tax shall be deducted from the cash dividend or interest so provided for by the secretary or treasurer of such corporation, and be paid to the State Treasurer. And every such domestic corporation shall annually make return to the Auditor General, at the time other returns for taxation are required to be made, of the amount of its stock outstanding entitled to receive cash dividends or interest, and every such foreign corporation shall, in the reports required to be made by them to the Banking Department make report of the amount of its stock held by residents of this State entitled to receive cash dividends or interest, and said Banking Department shall, at the time other returns for taxation are required to be made, certify to the Auditor General the amount of such stock each of said foreign corporations had outstanding at the time of its last report to said Banking Department, and upon said sum such foreign corporation shall pay the tax above required to be paid to the State Treasurer, upon demand, and failure to make such payment within thirty days after such demand shall have been made shall subject such corporation to the forfeiture of its right to transact business in this State: Provided, however, That nothing in this act shall be taken to require the payment of any tax upon any unmatured stock of building and loan associations upon which periodical payments are required to be made, or upon any such stock after it has matured and is in process of payment. Section 2. All laws or parts of laws inconsistent herewith or supplied hereby are hereby repealed. OPINION. Hon. Levi G. McCauley, Auditor General: Office of the Attorney General, Sir: Yours of recent date, to this Department, asking whether building and loan associations are required, under the Act of 22d June, 1897 (P. L. 178), to pay a State tax upon monthly-payment stock which has matured, but which, for various reasons, has not been paid and upon which the association is paying interest at the rate of 6 per cent. per annum, has been referred to me, for reply. The first section of the Act provides as follows: "Upon all full paid, prepaid and fully matured or partly matured stock in any building and loan association, incorporated under the laws of this State or incorporated under the laws of any other State, and doing business within this State, and upon which annual, semi-annual, quarterly or monthly cash dividends of interest shall be paid, there shall be paid a State tax equal to that required to be paid upon money at interest under the general tax laws of this State." I understand from your letter that some of the building and loan associations take the ground that monthly-stock, which is wholly matured, but which, for some cause, cannot be paid at maturity without encroaching upon the loan fund, is not liable to the tax imposed by the above Act, even though, by an agreement with the shareholders, the association pays interest on such stock until such time as it can be paid in full. They base this contention upon the proviso, which reads as follows: "Provided, however, That nothing in this Act shall be taken to require the payment of any tax upon any unmatured stock of building and loan associations upon which periodical payments are required to be made or upon such stock after it has matured and is in process of payment." This view of the law is, in my opinion, erroneous. The distinguishing feature is the payment of interest, and all stock of whatever kind or nature, upon which the association pays any rate of interest whatsoever, is, it seems to me, under this Act, clearly liable to the State tax and should be returned. I enclose herewith all papers submitted. Very respectfully, FREDERIC W. FLEITZ, Deputy Attorney General. TAX ON SALES OF FERTILIZERS, &c. ACT OF MARCH 25, 1901, P. L., p. 57. Section 2. That every manufacturer or importer of commercial fertilizers as specified in section one of this act shall, on or before the first day of January next ensuing, or before offering them for sale in this Commonwealth, file annually with the Secretary of Agriculture, an affidavit showing the amount of said fertilizer sold within the Commonwealth during the last preceding year; and if the said amount shall be one hundred tons or less, he shall pay to the Treasurer of the State the sum of fifteen dollars for each and every brand of such commercial fertilizer sold within the State during the last preceding year; and if the said amount shall exceed one hundred tons, and be less than five hundred. tons, he or they shall pay the sum of twenty dollars, as aforesaid; and if the said amount shall be five hundred tons or more, he or they shall pay the sum of thirty dollars as aforesaid. If such manufacturer or manufacturers, importer or importers, shall not have made any sales within the Commonwealth during the preceding year, he or they shall pay the sum of fifteen dollars as aforesaid. Every said manufacturer shall, at the same time, file with the Secretary of Agriculture a copy of the analysis required by section one of this act, and shall then be entitled to receive from the Secretary of Agriculture a certificate showing that the provisions of this act have been complied with. Section 5. Any person selling, offering, or exposing for sale, any commercial fertilizer without the analysis required by section one of this act, or with an analysis stating that it contains a larger percentage of any one or more of the above-named constituents than is contained therein, or for the sale of which all the provisions of section two have not been complied with, shall be guilty of misdemeanor, and on conviction shall forfeit a sum not less than twenty-five and not exceeding one hundred dollars for the first offense, and not less than two hundred dollars for each subsequent offense. It shall be the duty of the Secretary of Agriculture to enforce the provisions of this act, and all penalties, costs and fines recovered shall be paid to him or his duly authorized agent, and by him be immediately paid into the State Treasury, to constitute a special fund to be used in accordance with the provisions of section six of this act. OLEOMARGARINE LICENSES. ACT OF MAY 5, 1899, P. L., p. 241. Section 3. Every person, firm or corporate body, and every agent of such person, firm or corporate body, who shall manufacture, sell or offer, or expose for sale, or have in his, her or their possession with intent to sell, oleomargarine, butterine or any similar substance, shall first obtain from the Department of Agriculture through its agent, the Dairy and Food Commissioner, a license authorizing him, her or them to engage in the manufacture or sale of oleomargarine or butterine, or similar substance, for which said license he, she or they shall pay, if a manufacturer, the annual sum of one thousand dollars; if a wholesaler, the annual sum of five hundred dollars; if a retailer, the annual sum of one hundred dollars; if a restaurant keeper, or a hotel proprietor, the annual sum of fifty dollars; and if a boarding-house keeper, the annual sum of ten dollars; and the said license fee when received by the Dairy and Food Commissioner or his agent shall be by him immediately covered into the State Treasury. And after obtaining the license required by this section, before any person, firm or corporate body shall manufacture, sell or offer, or expose for sale, or have in his, her or their possession with intent to sell, oleomargarine or butterine or any similar substance, he, she or they shall be required to procure from the Department of Agriculture, through the Dairy and Food Commissioner, a sign or signs, as the Dairy and Food Commissioner shall determine, which in size and lettering shall be as the Dairy and Food Commissioner shall direct, and shall be uniform throughout the Commonwealth, clearly setting forth that he, she or they are engaged in the manufacture or sale of oleomargarine or butterine or any other similar substance, as the case may be, which said sign or signs, when procured, shall be hung up in a conspicuous place or places on the walls of the rooms or store in which the oleomargarine or butterine or other similar substance is manufactured or sold: Provided, That peddlers and others who may have obtained a license as herein required, and who shall sell, offer or expose for sale, or have in their possession with the intent to sell, oleomargarine or butterine or any similar substance, upon the public streets or ways, may sell or offer or expose for sale, or have in their possession with intent to sell, the same, if the cart, wagon, or vehicle, or receptacle in which the oleomargarine or butterine or other substance is contained, is marked or placarded on two sides of the exterior of said vehicle or receptacle in uncondensed gothic letters, not less than four inches in length, the words "Licensed to sell oleomargarine," or "Licensed to sell butterine," and if they shall in all other respects comply with the provisions of this act. All licenses under this |