The Jersey City news., 1892-01-13
TAXATION LEGISLATION.
Amendments Which the
State Commissioners
Will Recon-
mend.
ABUSES TO BE CORRECTED.
Exemptions TO Be Cut Down and
Corporation tockhoiders to
Be Followed Up Closely
special to tie .jersev cjtv Mems.


TRENTON, Jan. 13, iS92.-One of the
most important marters which the Legis-
)ature will be called upon to consider will
be the amendments to the new tax law
which the State Board of Taxation will
present in its first annual report. The
members of the Board are entitled to
much credit for the systematic and pains
taking manner in which they have iabored
to ascertain the radical defects in the
present tax system since their appoint
ment. The results of their investigation ms
have been published from time to time in
The JERSEY CITY NEWS
The first reconme ndation the Commits.
soners make is to compel assessors TO
obey the law by penalties of removal and
forfeiture with increased pay of the
assessors in the tow nships under 10000
Inhabitants.
assessors who wilfully construed the law
to suit themselves and favored some peo-
pie as against others. Unless this prac-
tice is broken up, the law, they say. will
be nullified. In Barnegat they found an
assessor elected by the people, who had
been in office twenty five years. and who
assessed some men only about ten per
cent. on the true value of their property.
TIME TO BE GIVEN FOR APPEAL.
The Board will also recommend tnat the
time for assessment. its completion. col
lection of taxes and lien on the property
be made nniform throughout the State,
in all taxing districts. and giving each
taxpayer and each taxing district ample
opportunity 10 see how the assessment of
individuals and taxing districts are made
Tor the purpose OF furnishing evidence for
the purpose of an appeal in case of unjust
taxation.
The great difficulty which is now ex-
perenced in procuring access to assess
ors' books, showing how property has
been assessed is the cause for this recon-
lnendation as the time for the completion
of assessments aud the payment Of taxes
Is different in different localities. There
is now no opportunity afforded the tax
payer for ascertaining the facts upon
which ne can make an appeal in order to
obtain redress in case of unj ust taxation.
II the time for making assessments WAS
uniform throughout with ample 0ppor-
tunity for taxpayers to inspect dupli-
cnes and time in which to make appeal
10 the Board, the greatest evil in the pres
ent taxing system. the Commissioners
think. would be done away with.
THE GREATEST ABUSE.
The greatest abnSe beyond doubt,
which the Commissioners discovered was
in the matter of exemptions. They found
tie amount to be very large. something
like $500 900 aud constantly growing.
They not only found abuses in the exemp-
tion allowed by law. but they also found
great reduction allowed by the assesso
out of favoritsm. The Commissioners
therefore recommend that the law gov
eruing and limiting exemptions be con-
fined to the narroWest possible limits. Ii
his is done there would be less opportun-
ity for assessors to show favoritism under
the ouise of statutory exemptions.
fhnr 1ffe1a ,fiuti n tinh rl,a
Board will make is that limit be fixed
+ for rhe tax rate beyond which any taxing
district m ust not levy upon the property
of individuals as corporations and that
I'll assessors iu villages aud circles over
5000 Inhabitants be required to assess the
land, the improvements thereon separ-
alely.
Every one familiar with matter of as
sessments in ehls State during the past
twenty years cannot fail to see that II the
assessors are required by law to value
land separately from the improvements.
one source OF favoritism by assessors
must be taken away. This is also con-
sidered by the Commissioners to be the
common sense manner OF valuing real
estate as any one knows who knows any
thing about business methods will testify.
OTHER RECOMMENDATIONS.
The Comm mssionerS also think that
much of the abuse complained of could
be done away with by giving the State
Board of Taxation power to increase In
diviGuaI assessments. 1t this WAS done
it Is thought that assessors can be CONS
pelleh 10 do their duty. If a man finds that
the State Board has authority to increase
his assessment he will not take pains to
cultivate the good graces of the as
SCISSORS.
The other recommendations of the
Board are that all INCORPORATED COM
panies in the State. be compelled on de-
mand, to file with the State Board a list
of their shareholders, with the addresses.
and requiring the said corporation to pay
the TAX of such shares as are held by nou-
residents of he State, thus increasing
the amount of tax derived from invisible
property; and that no deduction for
debts except from the assessed value OF
personal property. mortgages excepted.
InnNLN L