The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1875-06-30
COMMUNICATION.
Iosthe President and Messbers ct the
Police Jiny:

& ri Is
Tosthe President and Mss!bers, ct the
Police Jlny .
On thereorganiz ation Of the Police
fJuries snsthe several z arishesat the
fclose of the war large amounts of Pa
l.rish scrip we're III Giro uiation. The
Jury in this Parish attempted to pay,
or provide the means Of paying this
scrip by imposing a heavy tax. It.
commenced BY imposing 9 tax Of four
hundred per centu1n the next year
a larger tax, and the next, over six
hundred per eentum on the assess
ment Of property. The same thing
was doubtless done in other Parishes,
and public attention was thus drawn
to the fact that Police Juries were
not restricted by any express law in
the amount Of taxes they might levy.
These causes produced the law Of
1870 which enacts-
tsThat no city or other municipal COR
! poration shall levy . tax for any pur-
| pose which shall exceed two per centum
on the assessed cash value of all the
property therein listed for taxation, NOR
SHALL THE POLICE JURY OF ANY PARISH
LEVY A TAX FOR PARISH PURPOSES, except
to pay Indebtedness incurred prior to
1.-The passage of this act, during any year
WHICH SHALL EXCEED ONE HUNDRED PER
cENTUM OF THE STATE TAX FOR THAT
YEAR, unless such excess whether 1e-
wed by village, cities or parochial au-
thorities, shall first be sanctioned by a
vote of a majority Of the voters of said
village, city or parish at all election
held for that purpose D
When the Police Jury of this Pa
rish in The following year, was about
to decide upon the tax. to be levied,
it was confronted by this law, and
was compelled to abandon the system
Heretofore practiced, butt construed
zone hundred per centum' to mean
double the State tax doubtless
through haste.and inadvertence, } and
levied the tax as follows. If either
of you will look at his receipt for
taxes of 1871 he will find the proper
tons as below. Ofcourse thefgures
in each case will vary as each assess
ment varies: q
State tax $40 90
School tax Z, :. lt.t.. 10 90
Interest tax ~. -. 49,. 20 25
4 hevee tax Observation-Disclosures. 8 20
Special Levee tax ~. I. !. Is 25
Additional State tax. 80 90
Iarlsh proper ....5....,....,....... % w
The State tax being twenty-six
dollars, under this law of 1870 no tax
for Parochial purposes could be im-
posed exceeding one hundred per
centnm of that sum, viz. exceeding
twenty-six dollars, but under the err
/ roneous idea Of the meaning Of that
phrase, double the State tax or fifty
two dollars was imposed.
j Examine now your receipt for the
taxes Of 1872. You will find the
same items as'aboge in the same pro-
4 portions, but the Jury then laid the
tax Of one hundred per centum cor
|rectiy, and as it wanted more, under
took to lay special tax and did rs
you will see in your receipt
4 Parish proper. f28, 90
i Parish special ................ 26 90
j This last tax was clearly illegal be-
cause no vote had been taken on it,
and that objection was made, and in
/ 1873 for the first time the tax was le-
wed legally and for twenty-six dol
lars only. The Parish tax Of 1874
|now. in process Of collection is equal
to the School tax, Interest, Levee,
State tax proper, etc, etc. lin short
to all Of the taxes imposed by the
State for these various purposes.
! On the above list it would be or is
one hundred and thirty-three dollars
and twenty-five cents instead Of
twenty six dollars.
i It is for your Body to rectify this.
The Collector is not in fault. He is
merely collecting or attempting to
collect what he finds on the assess
4 ment Roll.
| 4 venture to address you on the es-
4 Inmates for the current year which
4 will be the basis Of the taxes, These
4 estimates / find in the Democrat and
the last item is three Thousand dol
lars for the Court House. No one
will dispute that the Court House
ought to be paid for, but q good
many will deny that your Body can
make part Of the tax payers bear
j the whole burthen. The, Police Jury
j has already levied taxes to pay the
entire contract for building the Court
House. A part Of the tax payers
j have paid their proportion. How
can you levy an additional tax on
them to pay the deficit Of Others?
i You cannot make me pay my neigh
lbor's tax.
i The sum Of six Thousand five hun