The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-02-28
.SnIRkERS OF TAXES
AUDITOR DUNN SAYS THEY ARE
PETTED BY RAMSEY, COUNTY
COMMISSIONERS
EPIsTLE TO MAYOR KIEFER
Chairman of the Board of County
Commissioners Receives a Letter
From the State Auditor Which Is
Reply In Kind to the Resolu-
ton Recently Adopted by the
Board.


Board.
State Auditor Dunn yesterday returned
to County Auditor Johnson, without his
approval, about seventy-fve of the claims
for abatement that had been passed on
and approved by the county board of
abatement. Mr.. Johnson was considerably
wroth at having the claims hurled back at
him from the capitol. Said he:
With all due respect to Mr.. Dunn, I
think he Is doing "a great injustice. The
county board carefully passed on each Of
those claims for abatement, and 1 do not
think there is one in the lot that should
not be allowed and approved"
The claims returned were:
Rev r. Niebelschuetz, John Eichen,
Marion Furness, Martha Gilfllan, c. w.
Gordon, Thomas P. Grace William P.
Hunt, F. ]. Huber, E. G. Krahmer, Capt.
tai City Wagon Works, D.. Kelly, Karst
ing company, H Aronson, A. M. Lawton,
well, D. r. Moves, M. C. Nelson, L. E.
Penny. William J: SCHNEIDER. John 3.
Woeley, G. J. Williams, t. II. Pierce,
Metropolitan opera house, Walter "A.
Wood receivers, Fred Michel, w. B.
Martin 3. G. Lsyeroos Tom Maena nara,
Griggs administrators H. eR. LANCE OPP
penheim & KalmaBEiH.i L. Parsons,
Joseph Bochek. James Allen, Menk Bros.
dine & Co, p G. Brady & Co, ". II.
Breen, R. c. Libby & Co, John &. Poore,
J; M. Forster,5=F. Birmingham, A. G.
Peil, DAYS. Heating company, F. W.
Benz, Gus p Brown Albreeht e Son
John Scharff. Twin City Printing com,
pany, G. w. WEIGH, L. Wallace, st. Paul
Union stock yards. CD. McConville, n
w. Thomas. Clara M. Ware, D. E. O'Con-
nell, John Berisford and c. H Barbour.
Today is the last day for the payment
of personal property taxes, and the per-
sons whose applications for abatement
have been rejected have the option of
either settling at once or going into court
Several of them called at the county
auditors office during the day and were
loud in their protestations at the treat
ment accorded them by the state auditor
Mayor Kiefer today received a reply
from the state auditor in response to the
resolutions passed 9and the action taken
by the county board of abatement.
Auditor Dunn says in part: First and
foremost, as secretary of the state board
board, deny each and every allegation
contained In your sweeping Indictment,
especially the allegation that the state
board has Disseminated against Ramsey
county Ramsey county was treated in
the same manner every other county.
The members Of the state board had no
| reason to believe that the city and county
officials of st. Paul and Ramsey county
| were Immaculate and infallible
toe -
which recently appeared in an interview
with him in the G | o e, including the
saloon valuations as a striking argument
| in his own behalf. Household goods and
personal property are also discussed at
| length.
The auditor cites the case recently de-
cided by Judge Kelly, and says:
| The latter part of your resolution is
! aimed at this Office for refusing to ap-
| prove of all the attachments recommended
| by your honorable board. If the assessor
| and your board did their duty in the
matter Of equalfzing assessments there
| ought to be very few applications for
correction of assessments and abate-
ment of taxes. Prior to 1878 county boards
| had absolute power to abate taxes. The
result was that tax az Shrkers who had
very little taxes. The law was changed
| in 1878 (section z119, chapter l, General
Laws, 1878: section 1852, Statutes of Min
|
authorized to- correct assessments and
| abate taxes, but only when favorably
| recommended to him by the county au-
ditor and county, commissioners of the
| county in which the property is situated.
| / had not been In the state auditors Office
| but a few weeks when Idiscovered that
| the indiscriminate approval of these APP
plications was working rank injustice
| to the people who had paid their taxes.
| During the five years / have been in the
! office 1 have acted upon more than 10000
| of these applications.
Many of the applications have been
disapproved and far toe many approved
! by me- There will be fewer approved
| hereafter. Why should a local board of
for the purpose of bringing up the ag-
/ gregate of their assessments, and the
same board a few months later recon-
| mend the cancellation of said arbitrary
/ assessments? Is it the duty of the state
auditor to approve ofssuch subterfuges?
| In conclusion let me say that will not
approve of any application for correction
/ OF assessment ana abatement of taxes ON
board of equalization. nor, will I approve
/ of any application simply because your
| honorable board recommends it, If it has
| no other merit.
| And in this connection. I will say that
/ if there was less favorItlsm shown tax
/ sfirkers there would be no trouble in
/ in this City. and that. too, without any
/ increase in the tax levy for school pur-
/ poses. Your honorable board seems to
| labor under the impression that the state
| is only interested as far as the little
/ state tax is concerned If there was not
/ a dollar of state tax to be collected bv
/ direct taxation in Ramsey. county 1t
would not make the slightest difference
/ matters. The people who pay their taxes
! promptly and the people who have no
"pull'' with local boards are entitled to
| some consideration, and. as fan. as 1 am
! concerned. thew shall have consideration.