Pomeroy weekly telegraph. [volume] (Pomeroy, Meigs County, Ohio) 1860-1866, 1860-01-17


TENS of taxation adopted in this State
and of the valuations made, will illus
trate these observations, and enable yor
the better to understand our present con
dition.
For many years no provision for gen
eral valuation constituted part of the rev.
enue system of Ohio. All lands were
classed as first, second or third rate, and
taxes for the support of the State Gov
ernment were raised by appointments
according to law, varying at first, from
twenty to sixty cents, and, at last, from
seventy five to one hundred and fifty
cents on each hundred acres. The assess.
ments were fixed by legislative enact
ment without reference to the Different
values Of different tracts of the same
rate.
Taxes for county and township pur-
poses were levied on town lots and build
ings according to appraised value, and on
few specified classes of animals, valued
at certain rates per head, by law, with
out appraisement.
That this system was inconvenient and
inequitable, is very manifest. The as
sessment of taxes for State and county
purposes, ON different descriptions OF
property, was productive of no little EN-
barrassment and difficulty; while the as
sessments according to rates, and not ac-
cording to value, result in great and
grievous inequality, which become more
and more conspicuous and vexatious with
the progressive but very unequal increase
in the value of lands. In1824, the taxes
levied for State purposes in Hamilton
county amounted to So, ,080, while Athens,
with less than thirteenth in value OF
| the real property in Hamilton, paid taxes
of the same description to the amount OF
So, 142.
1t was not until 1925, however, that
this system-if system it may be called,
was abandoned. In that year-distin-
guished in our annals by the coincident
adoption of practical and efficient meas
ures for common school education, in
! ternal improvement by canals, and taxa
ton according to value-provision was
first made, by Legislative enactment, for
the valuation of real property at its true
value in money. The amount of per-
sonal property actually valued, however,
: was still small Merchants and brokers
were arranged in certain classes, by the
associate judges, according to capital
and were taxed according to class, with
out reference to the amount of capital
actually employed by different members
: of the same class The values of the an
imals subjected to taxation were still
fixed by the legislature without appraise.
!, ment, and the list of exempted property
, was very large, including, not only real
property used for educational, religion:
bat mills ans e
factories almost or quite without exemp
ton.
2 1t will be seen, therefore, that the ac
1 of 1926 initiated, rather than established
the rule of valuation, and taxation ac.
cording to value But this was no small
t merit, and it was enhanced by the intro
: duction ola uniform system of levies fol-
all purposes, both State and local, ane
of provision for the equalization Of val
uation as between individuals, by County
e Boards and as between counties by {
| State Board of Equalization. Both, ir
f substance, still make parts of our reve
} nue. system.
It will be admitted, of course, that the
= valuation directed and made under the
act of 1926 affords no satisfactory meas
, ure of the actual wealth of the State a
: that time 1t has, however, some claim
to attention even in that view, and it ha'
higher interest as the practical resul
of the first attempt to. ascertain, howeve
effectively, true basis for the equita
: BILE apportionment of public burdens
among the citizenss The whole numbe
. of acres subject to taxation, returned by
! the assessors, was Is, 143, ,309; the aver
age value per acre, as equalized by th'
Board of Equalization, was $2.47; th'
} total value of lands was $37 ia, ,225; o
5 town lots, 81, ,321 ,034; in all S45 ,035 ,259
E The act of 1926 fixed no period for
second general valuation. The appraise
l ment made under it was to remain unal
| tered until further legislation. Tn
t county assessors, however, were require'
to ascertain in the spring Of each year
G what land had become liable to taxation
: during the preceding year, and wha
i new permanent improvements had bee
: made by structures on lands. The valu
e of this land and these improvements, an
: nually ascertained by the assessors, to
gether with that of all taxable persona
S property, computed according to arbi
: trary rates fixed by law, added annual
n to the equalized value of the real prop
|, erty, was to constitute the Grand Lis
r and form the basis of taxation for tn
+ current year.
It fhus3 IS 1926, the valuation perma
o nently settled by the Board of Equal
n zation, with the valuations, in the sprin
s of lands recently become taxable, of me-
j. improvements, and of personally, consti
;. tuted the first Grand List under the act
l. upon which were to be assessed the nee
Y essary levies for State, County and Town
e ship purposes. The value of lands wa
V S39, ,729, All; the value Of town lots an
l. personal property was $18, ,745, ,096. Th
n total valuation was $58,474, ,507.
n Important changes in the laws rela
h ting to taxation were introduced in 1881
l. An act of that year enlarged very con
r, siderably the descriptions Of taxabl
Ii property; reduced the list of exemptions
h and extended the application of the prin
/ ciple of appraisement and proportione
v contribution. 1t did not disturb, how
ever, the valuation of real property equal
J. lied in 1925, and it still retained, i
>, some of it's applications, the principle G
It arbitrary valuation by the legislature.
# At length, after lapse of nine years
e a revaluation of all real property was di
d rected by the legislature in 1884; wa
y made the same year, and was equalize
) in 1885. The property revalued con
e sisted of the descriptions made taxabl
% by the act of 1881; for the act directin
= the revaluation had made no change