Kansas City journal. [volume] (Kansas City, Mo.) 1897-1928, 1898-12-05
GENERAL. FUND OF STATE TREAS.
URY ALMOST EXHAUSTED.
TAX MONEY TO BE ADVANCED
COUNTY TREAsURERs WILL COME
TO AID OF STATE.
Condition Due to Low Rate of Taxa
tiOn-Naluation Assessed ut One
tenth of Actual Value
Probability of Leg
islatfon.
al.) The state

TOPEKA, Dec. 4-(Special) The state
treasury now has only $4,000 in the gen.
eral fund Unless the Republican county
treasurers come to the rescue by advanc-
ing tax money not due the state until jan
uary 10, State Treasurer Heflebower will
have to resume stamping warrants Not
paid for want of funds
When the Morrill, administration vacated
| the offices State Treasurer Atherton left
about $1,000 in the general fund. The Pops
made big howl about it and accused the
Republican administration with being ex-
| travagant. Inasmuch as Hefiebower will
leave the treasury empty. this howl seems
to have been out of place. The treasurer
will have at least 100000 in claims to pay
this month. Unless some of the new tax
comes in he will be shy. About 5000 in
SO taxes were received during the past
week. The treasurer expects enough in
| during the month to tide the administra-
tion over. He will be sadly disappointed
If the taxes do not come in and he is COM
PEELED to admit that the treasury is de-
| funct by stamping warrants not paid for
| want of funds.
This condition of the treasury is not due
| to extravaganza. 1t is simply the result
OF too low a tax levy, compared to the as
sessed valuation. There are two remedies.
The laws governing assessment and taxa
| ton must either be revised or the tax levy
for general revenue purposes must be in
creased. For several years past the various
counties have been beating down their as
god
lowering their quota Of state tax. In many
counties the valuation has been lowered
until now it does not represent one-tenth
the real value. although the state law pro-
vides that all property must be taxed at
its actual cash value.
To get the assessment I'D to the cash
value of the property Is a difficult mat
ter. Local sentiment is always against
an increased assessment. Where the selec-
ton of an assessor is left to a community
the people in that community will select
man who is sure to make the assess
ment low. In fact, an assessor realizes that
ne could not do business among his neigh
bors unless he fixed a low valuation on
their property.
For this reason a law may be introduced
revising the assessment and taxation laws
and providing for county assessors ap-
pointed by the governor to fix the assess
ment. In this way the assessors would be
removed from local sentiment and could
then assess property at its true value.
should a bill to revise the assessment laws
be defeated, then the only thing left for
the legislature to do is to raise the tax
levy for general purposes. In no other
way can enough money be raised to paw the
current expenses of the state government
Had the Populist legislature not reduced
the appropriations two years ago the state
treasury would have been drained COM
pletely several months ago. AS it is, It NAV
not be able to pull through Then there
will be thousands Of dollars in deficiency
appropriations to be provided for at the
next session. Senator Jumper, who was
instrumental in cutting down the appro-
priations, will have deficiency appropria-
ton himself for several hundred dollars
for services rendered as chairman of the
state board of charities. Jumper saws he
las learned thing or two, and that this
winter he will not be stingy with appro-
pria.tions.