The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-09-11

| 1t was ELECTED that the force did not
| work any time after Office hours, and that
| ten employees were engaged from July to
/ November 10, 1899, and that nine were
| employed during the balance of the fiscal
| year.
| Accepting" the members say "as a
| standard for months work the month or
| August, 1888, wherein We have thirty-six
| assessments. with the labor contingent
| thereto; affecting 77s pieces of property,
| the largest number in any month during
the year; serving 453 notices to property
owners; examining and certifying 439 taA
certificates. and such other incidental
duties as may devolve on the office, with
a full force of employees engaged thereon
during the official hours only, We draw the
following deductions:
THE average number of assessments re-
ceived per month during the year is 22.9i;
the number received during August, 1899,
or about 10 per cent more than the aver
age, SO; the average number of pieces of
property affected per month during the
year is 4l3 IA; the number of pieces In
cluded in the work of August, 1899. 776. or
nearly So per cent more than the average;
the average number of services of notice
per month during the year. based on the
theory that the number of services is about
Ga per cent OF the number of pieces affect
ed, is 26i 1-2; the number served on as
or Sc per cent above the average.
Deductions of the Con,mfssio1.
Excluding Sundays and legal holidays,
there were 306 working days during the
year and twenty-seven in the month of
August. If the regular force in the offlc,.
can, without working overtime. perform
certain volume of work, say the work in
connection with assessments affecting 776
| pieces of property within twenty-seve:i
days, the same force could at the same
| rate, all conditions being equal perform
volume of work on assessments affecting
S,1S4 pieces in year Of 306 working days
The. records show that only 1883 pieces OF
| property were assessed for improvements
during the year under consideration. consr.
| Quently the volume OF work actually per
formed in tAis Office in connection with
| these assessments is only about sc per
cent OF the capacity OF the force engaged
thereon.
Credit, however, should be given for
one employe less in the force for large
part of the year, and also for larger
| number of tax certificates examined and
certified In other months We estimate
per cent for the loss of one OF the force
and per cent for increased number of
tax certificates, thus giving about ST per
cent for the time the force is actually
way. the force has capacity for 20 per
cent more work than it is required to do.
again, In the matter of services Of NO
tice; In tie month of August 1899. the
number Of pieces of property affected by
special assessments is 776. The number
OF services of notice on the owners of
affected property Is 493, or about "a per
cent OF the number Of pieces assessed
This difference arises because frequently
one person is the Owner If Yy1ora tl,oy, mn,
piece OF property assessed. Some notices
include as many as ffty-two pieces. when
one service only is necessary Accepting
The foregoing as "a basis. we get the fol-
lowing result Number OF pieces assessed
during the year, 1859, GA per cent Of which
viii give 3l74 notices to actually serve
By two persons during SOC days. or a frac-
ton of over five notices per day per per-
son employed thereon. We do not feel
justified from these facts, however. In
recommending Il reduction of the force at
present, because that portion of the order
assigning this duty to US which REQUIRES
us to report what. If any, changes should
be made TO facilitate the public work
necessitated an investigation into and
some knowledge OF other systems In vogue
in other Offices, and we feel that all the
force, If personally efficient. can be profit
ably employed in putting our recommen-
dations into practical operation should thu
Commissioners concur therein and adopt
our suggestions.
INK system Criticised
AS TO the card system inaugurated re-
Gently in the Assessors Office, the COM
mission finds that the system is not far
enough advanced toward completion 10
permit of proper conception of its utility
and value. In criticism of the incongru-
Gus tax system now in vogue, the COM
mission says:
1T sometimes happens that taxpayer
viii ask for his tax bill and after receiy-
Ing, Will pay 1t, with the impression tina