The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-08-19
Proposed Increase In the Val
uatiOn of the County.
WILL BE DECIDED TODAY
BOARD HEARS ALL THE OBJ
JECTIoNs 1T DESIRES.
Statements all Went to Show That the
Property Was Assessed Up to Its
Real Cash Value-County Com
missioners Argue Against the
Proposed Raise.

The state board of equalization has
heard all the objections the members
care 10 hear on the proposition to in
crease the value of all taxable prop
erty in Salt Lake county per cent.
Yesterdays session of the equalization
board was held in the county commits
sioners' room, and representative ar
ray OF tax payers were present to give
evidence in resistance to the proposed
raise. Chairman Armstrong Of the
county board drew from the witnesses
statement after statement tending TO
show that valuations, especially on real
estate as returned by Assessor Quinn,
and equalized by the county board.
were in excess of rather than equal to
or below the real cash value which is
the value contemplated by the statute
for taxation purposes. The members
of the state board questioned the wit
nesses but were unable to set any of
them to modify their statements on
cross examination.
TESTIMONY ALL ONE WAY.
The testimony given before -yester-
days meeting was so overwhelmingly
one sided that the proceedings really
became monotonous. At the conclu
sion of the taking of testimony each
one Of the county commissioners made
an argument in opposition to the pro-
posed raise, and upon adjournment the
members of the county board and the
witnesses who tarried betrayed n their
tcountenances assurances of having
shown to the state board s satisfaction
by the preponderance of evidence and
convincing argument ample cause and
justification why the proposed increase
of 8 per cent in taxing values should
not he made.
REPRESENTATIVE TAX PAYERS.
Among the representative tax payers
who awaited themselves of the oppor-
tunity to help resist the proposed in
crease were w. s. Mccormick, John E.
Dooly, George a. Lowe, A. L. Thomas,
A c. BriXen, agent of the Brigham
Young Trust company; H. ]. Wallace,
for T. Auerbach & Bro; W. r. Wal
lace, for Henry Dinwoodey, T. E. Tay-
lor, Jeremiah Stringham, George A.
Snow. John Daynes, Simon Bamberger
and " B. Dougall. Curiously enough
there was not one of the witnesses who
had the hardihood to declare that he
favored the raise. but all were unani-
nous in depicting the condition con-
fronting tax payers as the result of
continued depreciation of property
values, reduced rentals and losing in
vestments. Many of the witnesses, in
fact, cited instances innun1erable and
of record, where property was offered
for sale, improvements were guaran-
teed to be duplicated and actual sales
made for less money than the same
property was scheduled and valued at
by the taxing power. Others declared
that if justice were done the tax payers
and the revenues of the state made to
pay all necessary obligations without
creating a deficit a reduction of &c
per cent on real estate would be au-
thorized by the board on all property
not already horizontally cut in value by
the county equalizers. The only in
stance where the board might have
scored a point in favor of the proposed
raise was contained in the letter of Al
bert Teats of Leadville to County
Treasurer Lynch. which stated: q
have no complaint to make The
writer owns two lots in North Water
loo, which are assessed at $50 each.
UNDER AMUSEMENT.
The state board of equalization took
the matter under advisement. and viii
probably render a decision this morn
ing. If the proposed per cent raise
is ordered there will be no end to the
surprise of the tax paying witnesses
and the county board, who believe they
have shown sufficient cause why thu
tax assessments should be allowed tC
stand.