The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1894-06-07
A Comparison of Tax Boards.

A Comparison of Tax Boards.
The Newark Journal, in comment
ing upon Mayor Lebkuecher's atti.
tude towards the Newark Tax Board,
displays its customary ignorance and
stupidity in ~institqting a. comparison
between that body and the Jersey
City board. Among the opening SEN
fences in an article entitled "a Com
parison of Tax Boards, we find the
following
1t is somewhat bewildering to find a Newark
newspaper making comparisons between the New
ark and Jersey City Tax Boards favorable to the lat
ter, but this is what our Sunday contemporary. the
CALI undertook TO do yesterday. 1t editorialiS
assumes to reflect the private Views of Mayor
Lebkuecher, who, it is stated, was very much dis
appointed when the bill providing for a new tax
board in Newark failed to become a law" as he be
lieves that the tax ONCE at present is a highly ex-
pensive department" A mere COM
parison of salaries amounts 10 nothing. hthe Mayor
had compared results in the two cities he would, as
a business man, declare that he would not have the
Jersey City tax system at any price. for 1t is the
most inefficient and costly in the entire State. II is
the worst administered department in misgoVerned
Jersey City.
We know very little of Newark's
Tax Board-we have a general idea
that it is a very efficient body-but
We do know something both of Jersey
City's tax boards, past and present,
and of Jersey City's government in
general.
OF the latter, we may say, that in
the worst days of the late Orestes
Cleveland it was not worse than New
ark's government. Our Traction
Company was never allowed to put
up centre poles in the streets. we have
had no six million dollar water steal,
and there is no Ivy Hill reservoir site
scandal in our history. AS for the
present time, it is only fair to say that
Jersey City is one of the best gov
erned cities of the United States.
Every department is in the hands OF
first rate men;-we differ from the ma
ioriUy of them in politics, but par
tisanship does not count with US
when the interests or the good name
of this city are at stake;-our tax rate
was lower last year than it had been
for many years before and we are
living within the money raised by it;
our debt is being steadily reduced,
and extensive improvements, public
and private are advancing rapidly.
The city is on the up grade. and no.
l. 81. fa4f Ga rrnr10h
for the Journals general Islander.
Coming down to the specific matter
of the Tax Board, we find the Journal
amplifias it's accusations as follows
There can hardly be said to be a tax system in
Jersey City. There is hardly a pretense of assessing
the personal taxes, the collections of which amount
to only about I per cent. as compared with the real
estate taxes. In Newark the personality is about IS
per cent. This difference alone would amount to
sereral hundreds of thousands of dollars which
Newark gets liz taxes, and which Jersey City does
not get. from personal property owners. mostly
rich men.
Now, it is true that personal taxes
are seriously underassessed in Jersey
City, but this is simply a survival of
an old system, and for several years
past every succeeding tax board has
taken some step towards righting the
wrong. We are free to confess we
were disappointed at the progress
made last year; the increase in per-
sonaI valuation was less than in 1892,
and vet over a half million was added
to the ratables on the account of
-----IA, Ht,io x,nor If ic undnp-
stood. the new board will make a de-
termined effort to make personal
property pay a sairer proportion of
the public expenses.
But, speaking of real estate, the
Journal goes on:7
In jersey, City the gnIssest fayoritIsm prevails e. ills,
There tb are /, la pse c pp3p 81 lien tn nsIses asseS'eu az n0'
This is a deliberate falsehood.
There is no such property in Jersey
City. On the contrary, the Tax
Board has shown a disposition to as
sess corporation property too high.
The case of the Sugar House is a not
able example. This was valued SO
excessively two years ago that the
State Tax Board had to intervene and
cut down the assessment: 81 Indeed,
values have been placed SO high by
the Tax Boardeh here as iasarule, that
reductions are very frequent by the
appellant board.
Winding Hpaths journal says
The significance of all this to the taxpayer is that
in Newark the tax rate is low and IN Jersey CITY II
Is high.
Is it not a fact that Newark's tax
rate, last year, was n of the highest
on record? Jersey City's was n OF
the lowest.
THE local Society for Prevention OF
Cruelty to Animals has taken up the
position that the special dog license
tax is illegal. We certainly cannot
see n defence for it. 1t appears on
its face to violate the provision OF the
Constitution which commands that all
taxation shall be I air and equal. 1t is
not only q discrimination against dogs
as compared with other forms OF prop
erty. but also causes unfair discriml-
nations among the dogs themselves,
st. Bernard worth $1,000 paying the
same tax as a curfmorth ten cents.
AS a police measure, h present
4 11n