The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1895-03-22
Question Of Taxation is to Be
Acted Upon.
Report OF Board OF State Valuation
Reached a Committee.
Remained Untouche for Three Years
on Account of Politics.

Before the final adjournment OF the
present General Assembly, the special
committee ON taxation, OF which Mr..
Henry I. Root is chairman, will present
bill for an act in relation 10 the taxation
laws OF the State, and the work for which
a commission was paid two years ago is
st last going to be passed upon by the
Legislature.
On April 26, 1889, the General Assembly
passed resolution that Messrs. Israel b.
Mason OF Providence, Henry w. Hayes OF
Bristol and Edwin A. Perrin of Paw
tucket, on the part of the House Ci Rep
resentatives, and Messrs. Joseph Il. Cole
OF Woonsocket and Robert 5. Frank
lin of Newpor on the part OF the Senate,
be- joint special committee for the pur-
pose of examining into the present
methods Of valuation of the several
cities aud towns of the State, upon
which he StatetaX is based, and also to
take into consideration all subjects con-
nected with the revenue of the State,
sources from which 1t is derived and the
manner OF assessing and collecting the
same and also all matters in connection
Herewith.
After three years work this special
General Assembly at its January
session OF 1892, which body promptly
received the document, and then ignored
ii. 1t was never read and never dis
tributed and the printed copies were
stored away at the State House,
uncalled for during the year that
politics only received attention. Yesterday
Tor the first time the report received
official recognition when the special COM
mittee commenced its work preparatory
TO making report at the close of the pres
ent recess of the Legislature.
The report Is as follows:
The Board of State Valuation, in con-
formity with the requirements of the act
whereby said board was created, aud OF
the various resolutions of the General AS
sembly relating thereto, and in further
apce of the suggestion made by this board
in their report TO the General Assem-
bly, at its January Session, A. ID.
1891, have the honor TO present their re-
port upon those subjects not contained
In their previous report. In addition
to the work OF making ''revalua-
tion of all the ratable property of
the several towns and cities OF the
State the Board were instructed TO
''inquire into the other sources OF revenue
sof the Stale and such possible sources OF
revenue as the board might deem advis-
able, for the purpose of suggesting a
means OF increasing the revenue OF the
State without increasing the burden of
direct taxation upon its people"
During the work OF "revaluation" the
boards attention was constantly being
drawn TO the antiquities in the tax laws
and to the necessity of many changes
nsTsi .na to enable o ssa assessors y
more fully discharge the duties of
their office. And first, the board are of
the opinion that assessors in all the towns
and cities OF the State should hold their
Office under uniform tenure, as an as
sesor who is elected for term of three
years would, of necessity, during that
period, bo better qualified to execute the
law, and be subjected to much less of
local pressure than one who is elected for
one year only. They have, therefore, pre-
pared bill which they present herewith
in conformity with this view.
In this connection also, the Board be-
lieve that uniform time of assessment of
property for taxation would be OF adj
vantage TO the several towns, avoiding
thereby the questions which now arise re-
specting personal property assessment of
individuals who dwell in one town por-
tion OF the year and in another town the
remainder OF the year. bill relating to
this subject also accompanies this report.
The most perplexing questions which
the board have had 60 deal with have
been those relating 10 the taxation OF
personal property. What personal prop
erty should be taxed, what allowances
should be made for Indebtedness, and
by what method the personal
property owners should be reached for
taxation, have been some of the
most important questions which have
occupied the attention of the board dur
ing the past year. They examined the
theories OF all the leading writer's upon
these subjects, and after full discussion
thereof determined 10 make q practical
investigation of the methods pursued in
some other Gtates. A sub COMMITTED, there
fore, was appointed, consisting of Messrs.
Mason and Hayes, together with the
clerk, Mr. Baker, TO visit those states
from which, In their judgment, they
could obtain the best information upon
these subjects. This committee visited
Maine, Vermont, Massachusetts, New
York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Mary
land, and interviewed the State Ruthori-
ties in each, and also conferred with the
local authorities in the cities OF Boston,
Burlington, Philadelphia aud Bal: imore
upon the questions above referred to. as
we'll a. upon methods OF raising revenue
foreign 10 our system. The committee
found that i'm nearly all OF these States
the subjects which they had under iuves-
tigstion bad been considered by state
commissi ions which had presented eN-
haustive reports and that In some OF tie
states the reforms suggested had been in
practical operation for some time.
In addition TO uniformity In methods
(Which the board have recommended
aboye). the committee found that tho So
called listing SYSTEM" in a more or less
inquisitorial form, was in operation in
most OF these States but upon the pres
eDtation OF the report OF this committee,
the board, after a lengthy discussion OF
the question. concluded that Rhode ISL
and sentiment would not permit OF the
adoption OF listing system with much
more inquisitoriai features than the pres-
ent system now possesses. But in order
10 overcome the difficulties which oxistun-
DER the law In It's present form, they have