The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1892-09-24
SINGLE TAX DEPARTMENT.
Special Assessment for Public I'm.
provements.
SOL. r. CLARK.


1t was not until the country began to
grow wealthy after the war and the
demand arose for costly public improve
ments that the question as TO the method
OF assessing the cost was much mooted
or considered. Since then the contro-
versy has been made between the gen.
eral tax and that of the special asses
ment" Land owners oppose the
speclai assessment system because
they desire to reap the benefits and cast
the burdens upon the people In the
Arkansas convention of 1874, which
gave us our present constitution, we had
some men of great foresight, and they
shifted this controversy afar off, Crap
pied with it, and settled it. They
limited all taxation by the states, coun-
ties or municipalities, and limited the
power of the legislature to confer any
power of taxation upon cities and
towns except to the extent in each year
of five mills on the dollar for general
purposes and five mills to pay indebted
ness existing at the time of adoption of
the constitution, with the following ex-
ception:
Nothing in this constitution shall be
so construed as to prohibit the general
assembly from authorizing assessments
on real property for local Improvements
IN towns and cities under such regula-
tons as may be prescribed by law, to
be based upon the consent of a majority
in value of the property holders owning
property adjoining the locality to be
affected, but such assessments shall be
ad valorem and uniform.
IN 1881, after bitter opposition by
large capitalists and land owners, the
general assembly enacted law to carry
this constitutional provision into effect.
by this act, with several amendments,
any ten owners of real property in any
city of the first class may petition the
council to take steps for the making of
such local improvements The council
shall then by ordinance lay off the city,
or SO much as is mentioned in the petit
ton, into one or more improvement dis
tricts by number, designating the
boundaries If, within three months
after the publication of this ordinance
as prescribed in the act, majority in
value of the owners of real property in
the district petition the council to make
such improvements, designating the ma
ture OF the Improvements and the cost
thereof, the council shall at once ap-
point three persons, owners of real
property in the district, who shall COM
pose board of improvement commits |
sioners for the district On report of |
these commissioners as to the plan of |
the improvements and the cost, the |
council shall, BY ordinance, assess such |
cost upon the real property in said dis
trict assessing each parcel according to |
its value, as shown by the last county |
assessment, and subsequent assessments |
shall be in accordance with the period
ical assessments of real estate of said |
city or town as made from time to /
time.
II the estimated cost shall exceed one
per cent of the estimated value of the |
property, then it shall be provided by
ordinance that the assessment shall be
paid in successive annual installments,
so that no assessment in any one year
shall exceed one per centum of the as
sessed value of the property for such
particular improvement Authority is
then given the board to borrow money
upon the pledge of future unsolicited |
assessments, and such annual assess
ments are continued until the improve
ments are paid for. Not many improve
ments under the law were made on &C
count of the opposition to it, until, in
1883, the supreme court decided the law
to be constitutional, when opposition
ceased, and since then all the improve
ments of the kind in the cities of the
first class are constructed under it. And
it must be admitted that the effect has
been, while an enormous lug upon the
property holder, and Notwithstanding
some defects in the law, to give a great
impetus to the growth and appearance
of the cities Already Little Rock has
a magnificent system of sewerage,
which will soon extend to the whole
city, and her principal streets are en-
bellished and ornamented with pave
ments and sidewalks, built in the first
order of workmanship, and still the
work goes on.
The same may be said of the other
cities, but not, perhaps, in the same de-
gree. / am of the impression that in
the smaller cities and towns such i'm
provements are still made by general
taxation. To all appearance, therefore,
this law has been and is a large ele-
ment in the rapid growth and progress {
of the state. IL
Now, while this system must be re- /;
garded as partial recognition of the {
principles involved in the single tax :,
il does not come up to them. | I
Vt will be seen that the real property"
and upon which the tax is
levied, includes the Improvements OF
the land as well as the land itself, and
the board is not at liberty to make a 6