Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1899-09-05

system or method furnished him by the
city, then comes the taxpayer to make
objection and to demand correction.
The taxpayer naturally claims that the
assessment is too high; the assessor
claims that it is fair and equitable, but
he has no system whereby he
can prove ii; the tax payer
threatens an appeal to the Council
or the court, and possibly gets reduc
ton, and an assessment which was per-
haps moderately fair and equitable be-
comes thereby inequitable. This is no
theory; that the assessment of property
n our city is inequitable you have but
to ask any taxpayer in order to be con-
vinced. Nor is the ioequity Of assess
ments due to any lack OF ability, fairness
or honesty upon the part of our asses
sor. Not at all; it is entirely due to the
city not providing him with modern,
accurate and scientific method or sys-
tenn of assessing.
Now how does this unscientitic method
of assessing affect the income of the
city? The number of separate pieces
of property in Alexandria is not less
than 5000, perhaps considerably more.
If the assessor should make an error in
his Guessing" the taxable value OF the
property in the community, and if his
error should average 500 per piece of
property the city would make or lose
50 500 per year. Doyou believe that he
can guess" to within 500 of the taxa
BILE value of any piece of property? Do
you not know that some property has
been assessed at nominal sums for years?
Do you not know that some property is
over-assessed? Do you not believe
that if the property which is now under
assessed were raised to it's equitable tax
able value and that the property which
ia now over-assessed were reduced to
its equitable taxable value the total OF
taxable values would be increased by
an amount in excess of an average OF
800 per piece of property in the COM
muuity?
In contrast to our crude, inaccurate
and unscienti6c method of assessment,
place the one in use in the city OF Wash
ington. There the assessors view the
property and determine: l. The ac-
tusl. reasonable market value of the
ground per square foot, not Its value at
a forced sale, but its value in rela-
ton to all the other gre und on the
square or block. 2. The number
of square feet contained IN the
lot; the number OF such feet by the
price per square foot gives the market
value of the lot. 3 The market vslue
of the improvements, the value of the
lot added to the value of the improve
ments, gives the total market value OF
the property. OF the total market
value of the property they take fixed
percentage, as representing It's taxaoie
value. That method is scientific; it
leaves nothing to chance. 1t ls equl-
table because it causes each to pay
neither more nor less than his fair share
of taxes.
I apprehend that if some such meth
cd. or system, were adopted by our city
it would be found: 1st That the total
taxable values would be very lsrgel y
increased; I'd. That as a result of such
increase there could be material re-
duction in the tax rate; result which
would be of incalculabie value to the
city. 3. That equity would be done
between each individual taxpayer, and
between each class of taxpayers, and
at the same time. 4th. There would
be added to the total taxable values an
amount (Which had been previously es-
Gaping Its equitable share of taxation)
of Ia axable values so large that even at
a reduced tax rate the income derived
from it would fully pay the interest
upon the bonds issued to improve the
streets. Yours truly,
JAMES BAYNE