The San Francisco call., 1897-07-30
WE'RE NOT
GIVEN THEIR
DEMANDS
:. =.
Supervisors Refuse to Re-
!: !: "duce the Corporations
=. Assessments.
BANKS WERE NOT INCREASED.
An Effort to Fix the Value of
=. Railroad Franchises
Headed Off,
:. THE ASSESSORS FIGURES ADOPTED.
Mayor Phelan Announces That the
=. Total Reduction Amounts to
,: Only 100000
THE ASSESSORS FIGURES ADOPTED.
Mayor Phelan Announces That the
: Total Reduction Amounts to
Only 100000.

:. Yesterday was the last day allowed the
Board of Supervisors, sitting as a Board
:: of Equalization, to determine the justnees
ot the assessments made by the Assessor,
and the larger portion of the time was
spent in discussing the advisabiIity of
raising the valuation placed on the prop
ertv: of. the large corporations and banks.
:: The; committee on assessments, consist
ing of Supervisors Dodge, Lackmann and
Clinton, presented a resolution which the
niembers CLAIMED would settle the ques-
Iion OF the value of the franchises that
hsye been a bone of contention all through
the session. The resolution read as fol-
.lows:
TO the Honorable the Board Of Supervisors o.
The City and County Of San FrdnciSc0-GENTLE-
p MEE:. Your Committee on Taxation after due,
cartflrL AND deliberate consideration submit
the following resolutions:
ResOLred, That 1T is the sense of this board
thRt~the. basis. OF assessments on the quasi
public corporations to be considered SHAH be
so per cent Of the market value OF the stock
and bonds OF each corporation.
=. ReSoLyed further That the tangible property
as assessed by the Assessor be confirmed in each
case OF "a quasi public corporation and that the
difference between the whole value of the
:property as herein determined and the said
valuation of the tang bic property be the
assessment of the franchise fixed by the board.
{. A. CLINTON,
WASHINGTON DODGE,
-. JOHN LACKMANN.
DR.: Dodge said he thought this would
give the City nearer what is due it from
the corporations than is received under
the present system of assessments. 1t
would add about $13, 000,O 600 to the valua-
tlon of the City's property and eoualiZe
the assessments paid by the big concerns
and the small property-owners
-. 81 believe corporations fail to paw their
Just dues to the City" said DR.. Dodge,
''and while l am not a corporation hater
. by any means [ desire to see them do
their duty By the City government.
81 know that in many cases the repre-
sentatfves of corporations do not believe
the. concerns for which they appear pay
:: fsxes on the full value of their holdings.
They are paid to head off raises and Sc
cure reductions if they can, and they do
what they are paid for.
ITO my mind 1T is plain that the cor
porations deliberately misrepresent the
value of their holdings in order to escape
=: taxation, and il is our duty to see that the
burdens of small holders who pay on 80
per cent of the value of their property are
Hghtened by making those who own
millionsof property pay just amount of
taxes"
-: Supervisor Smith said he objected to
such a measure on the ground that it
would end in litigation with the company,
and that if the City lost the case it might
result in the taxes being lost.
Mayor Phelan said he believed the fran
chises of the various corporations were the
most valuable part of their property, and
he:was satisfied that the franchise of the
- Market-street Com pany was worth S9,0OO.-
: 600 0instead of 81, SOC, 900, as fixed by the
Assessor.
-: When the matter finally came to a de-