The Washington critic., 1889-02-15
ArronNrY DAVE, olrNIoN.

ATTORNEY DAVIS OPINION
The question was referred to the OF
fee of tn Attorney, and Assistant At
torney II + Davis rendered the follow
ing opinion:
OFFICE or THE ArroRSBY
or THE DISTRICT or CoLpMBiA,
WAsHINGToN, February ~ 1881.
GENTLEMEN. have considered u
ter OF the appraisement OF the stock O.
Ercning Star Newspaper Company for
current fiscal year, which has been refcrrel
TO this Office for opinion AZ 10 tho power
and duty Of the Commissioners IN t1c
premises. t-
The case appears 10 stand thus:
The company has n capital stock o the
par value Of 100000, divided into 100
shares Of the par value OF $1,000 each.
Under the existing tax law( no Stat, 400,
Sec. 1l) the capital stock OF every taxable
corporation In the District IL appraised In
bulk by the Assessor. From this appraised
value the value Of the corporations taxed
real estate IN deducted, aud ON the differ
ence the corporation pays the tax prescribed,
namely, one and half per cent.
For the fiscal year ending June 80, 1883,
the capital stock OF the SIR Company was
appraised and taxed at $4,000. In up
praising II for the current fiscal year Tho
Assessor placed the taxable valuation. at
creased valuation was presented TO the
company objection was made by II, and, as
the Assessor reports, ono Of its officers
called upon him md stated that the stock
was worth but nfty cents on the dollar, and
that $50, 600 represented the correct valua-
ton for taxation. AS the stock Is not on
the market and so IL not quoted rs other
stocks, the Assessor, having then no better
information, acquiesced In the return to the
figures of last year. But he hos learned
that certain Of the stock Is In the hands
| OF nh executrix, whose accounts pass
through the Supreme Court of the District,
and that from the last Of these accounts
twenty-five shares OF the stock, appraised
at $4,000, yielded in 1887 net income OF
! s35.st0 Taking these figures rs basis,
and allowing net revenue OF eight tSl per
cent, the Assessor reports the total capital
stock To be worth In reality something over
s2,0O00G0, and that appraising the stock
according to his rule (at two-thirds OF its
! actual vnlue), the valuation OF the COM
! pary's stock for taxation for this year
should have been $1,339,39l, instead of
| 10000, q difference OF 81 ,2S0, 39l
You wish to know your power and duty
as to correcting the valuation and collect
ing the latter Dalf OF the tax for this fiscal
year at the corrected valuation. ~
at is one of the inirmities Of our present
tax law that corrections of valuations, when
tain specified time, the result of which is
that after the lapse OF such time the power
of correction is gone. As respects corpora
tions the case is even worse, for the assessor
being given the power Of appraiscment in
the first instance, there is no provision
whatever for correction of bis valuation;
and SO an appraisenent, whom once male,
must hold for year. The evil OF this con-
dition In in general less than might appear
ut first glance, because as q rule the stock
OF corporations is either generally on
the market and has quoted price, afford
ing the assessor O safe guide, or such stock
come from time to time on the market,
with like effect. But in the case of n com
pany whose stock In held in few hands and
is kept of the market the evil of the situa-
tion is unmitigated, as In this case, In
which (aasuming the facts to be as related)
a wealthy corporation has, from its position
so favorable to concealment Of the real
value of its stock, escaped payment of
within little Of $4,000 as taxes for. the
current year-a faot accidently exposed,
and Of which exposure the. District cannot
take advantage until the next fiscal year.
"ro prevent q recurrence of what. is SO
manifestly against the public interest new
legislation must be had, In seeking which
you may, Of course, rnhesitatingly count
upon the cordial approval of all good citi
zens and the earnest support Of the foca
press, so pre-eminent In its zeal for the
public good.
Respectfully, 49,
"HBSRY 4. DAVIS,
"Asst Atty d. G."
To the Commissioners.