The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-03-26
KICK OVER 1T.
Equalization Board Raises
Values Without Reason.
Secret Behind Sheehan's File
No. Some Seventh.
Robert and Sixth Street
Owners in Arms.

The owners of real property situated
on East Seventh street between Waha
sha and jackson streets, Robert street
between Seventh and Fourth streets.
and Sixth street between Robert and
minnesota streets are preparing to
night the assessment made on their
property for the year 1895 In reality
1t Is not so much the assessment that
is objected to. but the action taken
| by the board of equalization in rails
ing the valuation Of all the real prop
erty on the streets mentioned 20 per
cent after the valuation had been fixed
| by the assessor
The claim is made that the board had
| not the legal right to raise the vaul-
| alton at the time 1T did, and that
unless the board of abatement reduces
the assessed valuation of the property
the 20 per cent 1t was raised, the fight
| will be taken into the courts. The
matter has been kept very quiet and
aside from County Auditor Sullivan,
Mayor Doran, Assistant City Attorney
Phillips and the attorney for the prop
erty owners, the facts have been kept
| from the public.
1t was brought to light by the in
PRODUCTION in the senate g. day or so
ago Of bill which was handed up by
Senator Sheehan, of the Ramsey del
egation, and referred to the judiciary
| committee of the senate The bill.
| S. f. No 523 is entitled an act to
rat1fy confirm and legalize the acts
and proceedings of county boards of
equalization, reads as follows:
BE It enacted by the legislature of the
Section 1. That all acts and proceedings
or county boards of equalization and with
respect to the equalization OF the assessment
OF the property in the respective counties as
contemplated by section 1862 of the state Of
Minnesota 1894, be and the same are hereby
in all things ratified, confirmed and leEalfzed
Whether saaa acts or E-neceasags were had
within the time limited and specified by SAID
section or not provided however, thatwthe
same shall have been finally completed and
the corrected list shall have been prepared
and filed by the county auditor of the county
by the time and as specified in section 1854,
of the said statutes.
Take effect at once
Moritz Helm, attorney for the prop
erty holders in the contention, seen yes
terday afternoon, said he had been adj
vised of the bill introduced by Senator:
Sheehan and had appeared before the
judiciary committee of the senate He
had been granted five minutes in which
this little time he had managed to con-
vince the members of the committee
present that there was good ground
| for the turning down of the bill. The
hearing had been continued until Sat-
/ urday IN order that he could present
| additional facts and ne felt certain
that the measure would fail to pass or
! even be faVorably reported
/ Mr.. Helms recital of the affair places
the members of the board Of equaliza-
| ton and the county auditor in a peculi-
| ar position. He says that In August,
/ 1885, without notice to the property
| owners and after the completion OF
| the assessment the board of equal
| iZation claims that a resolution was
| passed increasing the assessment on
| real estate, exclusively 20 per cent on
| Seventh street between Wabasha and
| Jackson streets, on Robert street be-
| tween Seventh and Fourth streets and
| on Sixth street between Robert and
! Minnesota streets. The increase in
valuation was nearly $500, 900, and in
| cluded property owned by between
| sixty and seventy owners. An exami-
| nation of the records Of the proceed
| ings of the board of equalization and
| the printed publication in the official
paper on Sept. IA, 1885, OF the acts Of
! the board Mr.. Helm says, showed that
no such resolution had been passed.
Further said Mr.. Helm, copy of the
action taken by the board which was
sent to the state auditor by the county
auditor, does not show that any such
resolution, as the county auditor now
claims, was passed by the board.
From an examination of the memo
randum of the board, which the county
auditor keeps on file, Mr.. Helm said 1t
appeared that such a resolution was in-
troduced. The only indication that 1t
was offered was piece Of paper from
which it appeared that such raise was
attempted to be made. and that ten OF
the members had voted for the raise IN
valuation and one against it. Aside
from this there was nothing, either In
the records Of the board as kept,
printed, or as sent to the state auditor,
which showed that the resolution had
been passed.
Another thing which Mr.. Helm had
learned was that since his first exam
ination Of the written records in the
office of the county auditor an attempt
had been made to rectify the matter
by inserting In the minutes what pur-
ported to be a copy Of the resolution
raising the valuation on the streets
mentioned 20 per cent. Mr.. Helm ex-
hibited a copy Of the written records
Of the board as now prepared, which
he claims does not, even at this late
date, correspond with the alleged ac-
ton of the board.
Another point made by Mr.. Helm IS
that the board acted illegally In rails
ing the assessment, in that it's time ia
sit as a board of equalization had ex!
pired when such resolution was at
tempted to be passed AS a proof of
this he cites the introduction of the bill
in the legislature by Senator Sheehan
in which an attempt Is made to Legal
iZe and confirm acts or proceedings Of
board of equalization, whether or not
such acts or proceedings were had with
in the time limited and specified by
section 1852 OF the general laws. The
further point is made by Mr.. Helm that
under decisions of the supreme court
of Indiana the board Of equalization
has not the right to raise the valna-
tion of any real property unless the
owner Of said property has been fully
notified that such action is contempla-
ted. No notice Of such proposed ac-
tien Mr.. Helm said, had been given the
property owners, and the raising of tna
assessed valuation 100000 had been
done after the departure OF the COM