Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1892-04-14
SINGLE TAX DEPARTMENT.
Single Tax Investigation in Wash
ington.

The most important public occurrence
In the District of Columbia in favor OF
the single tax cause took place last Sat
urday, March IL, when the district COM
missioners gave public hearing OF
Tom L. Johnson's bill to shift taxation
in the district from improvements to
land values. To those not familiar with
the form of district government 1T
should be said that there is no municipal
legislative body here. Congress passes
all the municipal laws and has them adj
ministered by three commissioners. ap-
pointed by the president. Each house
of congress has a district committee, to
which all matters pertaining to legisla-
ton for the District of Columbia are re-
ferred. The district committees Gus
tomarily refer much of their business to
the commissioners, whose approval or
condemnation in most instances deter
mines the action of the congressional
committees. Mr.. Johnson's bill, on be-
ing introduced in the house, was re-
ferred to the district committee, and by
that committee referred to the district
commissioners. 1t was therefore here
that the first contest had to be made,
and in accordance with public notice the
friends and opponents of the bill assem-
bled in the Office of the board of COM
missioners Saturday at noon.
twas an interesting little assemblage.
The three commissioners, experienced
looking, white-haired men, sat together
in bow window with large table be-
fore them. At one end of the table sat
Mr.. johnson with his maps, books and
papers, and at either hand Congressman
Warner and Congressman Simpson.
Near by sat Charles Hemingway, who
had drafted the bill. hanged about the
room and crowding in the doorways
were prominent citizens, property own
ers," and persons conspicuous in the
single tax movement. Against the wall,
but in places where they could hear, sat
the district assessor, Matthew Trimble,
and his three assistants, one of them a
middle-aged, fne-looking colored man.
The chairman of the board, Commits
sioner Douglass, politely, and in the
briefest manner, explained the reason
of the hearing, and read the bill under
consideration, after which he called
upon Mr.. johnson to speak upon it.
Everybody gave close attention when
Mr.. johnson arose. Il appear in behalf
of this BILL said he, (which proposes to
change the plan of assessing property
in the District of Columbia by relieving
improvements and putting taxation en-
tirely on land values. / do not come
here in antagonism to any interest in
the district l am not unfriendly to the
district. / come to urge what l believe
will be a great benefit to the district
and its people"
Commissioner Douglass gravely nod
ded assented and Mr.. johnson went on:
1--WE find by looking at the assessment
returns of the district for 1891, that the
value of improvements just about
equals the value of the land. That is
to say. the result of that assessment is
that the house, the improvements, all
that lies above the land. is about equal
in value to the land itself. So that if
the tax assessment remains as it is and
you were to take the tax off the inn
provements, to raise the same amount
of money you would have to levy twice
the rate on the land or So instead of
$3.50"
Mr.. johnson then spread out on the
table large map of the district of Co
lumbia. He said that at first blush it
might be thought that this change
would fall heaviest upon the poorer
people of the city. but the contrary is
true. He had taken twelve blocks in
the most important part of the business
centre, and ten blocks in the poorer
residence section, and found that, ac-
cording to the assessors published fig
ures, in the latter locality the value OF
improvements amounted to SO per cent,
and the value of the land 81 per cent
of the total real estate assessment;
while in the former section, that is, in
the business centre. almost the reverse
is true, 80 per cent. of the assessed
value constituting the value of improve
ments, and 81 per cent the value of the
land. In other words, that in the resi-
dence section the improvements ex-
ceeded twice the value of the land they
rested upon, while in the business sec
ton the land value amounted to almost
double the value of the improvements.
''If you start from the center of the
city" said Mr.. johnson, pointing to the
map. you find the value of the inn
p:'ovements low as compared to the
value of the land; and as you approach
the outskirts you find the value of the
improvements is high. So that to re-
lieve improvements of taxation does not
relieve the people IN the center of the
city, but the people in the small houses
towards the outskirts-the people hav-
ing small homes
The commissioners seemed interested
in this statement, the chief assessor
was a little confused, and bunch of
single tax men, sitting in corner,
broke into loud applause and looked as
happy as if they had just heard that
they were heir to large fortunes. Mr..
johnson smiled and said that that was
only the beginning, that his deductions
had been drawn from the official as
sessments, but that those assessments
We're far from the true conditions, since
after a careful study of the subject,
employing the services OF six expert
enced and well known real estate
agents. he had conclrded that the most
valuable land in the city was greatly
undervalued by the assessor. These
real estate experts selected twenty
eight typical blocks from various parts
OF the city, and without knowing what
the information was desired for, had
determined land value, exclusive of
improvements. from their knowledge OF
recent sales. The value of the land OF
these twenty-eight blocks as given by
the assessor was So, $50, 900. As esti-
mated by the experts this value amount
ed to S15.294. 600. In one block. perhaps
the most valuable block in Washington,
the assessors valuation amounted to