Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1900-12-01

That section 2637 of the Compiled
auditor of the territory at your Sep
TENDER meeting to furnish YOU board
with the assessment rolls of each coun-
ty, and in ease the auditor shall not
have received the assessment roll of
any county by the first Monday of Sep
TENDER, it is his duty to certify the fact
to your board, and to the Judge of the
district court of the district in which
your board is sitting, whereupon the
judge shall issue his mandate directed
to the sheriff of the county from which
such rolls lave not been received, di-
recting the sheriff to summon the delin-
roll in the auditors office, the cost of
such proceeding to be paid by the de-
%linquent official, together with a fine
not exceeding 500, to be imposed by the
judge issuing such mandate.
1t is the duty of the assessor to make
out these assessment rolls in triplicate,
to be furnished to the probate clerk,
who shall transmit n copy to the au-
ditor, keep one copy on file, and give
the third to the collector for the pur-
pose of collecting taxes. Compiled
Laws, 1897, sections 4053, 1854, and sec
ton II, chapter 81, session laws Of 1899.
| am aware that there has beer some
confusion and controversy in the terri
tory as to whether it is the duty of the
probate clerk or the assessor to make
out the tax lists or the assessment roll,
the two having become confused by the
loose language used in he law, but
from reading the different statutes all
together it is evident that Assessment
roll" and tax list" are meant and in
tended to be one and the same thing,
Section 4O49 provided that the order
Endorsed Upon the assessment roll, and
abstract of this is required to be made
by the clerk, but the law of 1899 spe-
officially imposes the duty upon the as
SCISSOR of making up all the assessment
rolls, and any failure on the part of
these officers to do their duty in this
regard subjects them to the fine and
costs provided for in section 2637 re-
ferred to above, n also to the penal
ties provided in section 80, chapter %,
Of the session laws of 1899, when he
may be removed from office, and this
action may be had upon the complaint
of any taxpayer. While these penalties
are severe, they are absolutely neces-
sary to enable your board to transact
it's business fairly and intelligently.
Without having the assessment rolls
before you, it is not possible for you to
act properly in the equalization of
taxes, and these stringent provisions of
the law should be enforced by you
against delinquent officers.
In regard to appeals to your board, it
is provided in section 404S of the Conn
piled Laws of 1897, that any person may
appeal to your board by filing a writ
ten notice of appeal in the office of said
county board, %whereupon the clerk shall
within two days after the filing of such
notice of appeal, and upon payment by
the appellant to the said clerk of 81 as
a fee, certify in writing to your board
all proceedings had before such county
board in the matter of such assess
ment so appealed from, as well as such
notice of appeal. In many cases you
state that the probate clerk c%ertifies
nothing to your board, except the notice
of appeal. In such case the appeal is
not properly before your board, and you
have nothing to guide you in your de-
termination, and the clerk is derelict in
his duty under section 1886 Of the Com
piled Laws, which provides that any
clerk of the board of county commits
sioners failing or refusing to send tt
your board a complete transcript in ap.
peal cases, as O provided by the law
within thirty days from the date no.
tice of appeal is filed with him, shall
be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upor
conviction shall be fined in a sum no
exceeding $1O0. This provision should
also be enforced against derelict clerks
for the reason hat their failure to fol
low the law practically denies the ap'
pellant a hearing before your board
which, from the notice of appeal only
can derive no sufficient information
and necessarily the appeal must be dis
missed, as not being in conformity will
the law, thereby doing injustice to TIN
appellant, who is not in fault, and W
has to suffer from the failure of thu
probate clerk to do his plain duty, al
laid down in the law.
Very respectfully,
EDWARD L.. BARTLETT,
Solicitor General.
Santa Fe, N. M, Sept. IL, 1900.
Whereas, it appears TO the board tina
the auditor Of the territory has failed t.
receive the assessment rolls from thu
following counties: Bernalillo, Eddy
Grant, Otero, San Juan, San Miguel
Socorro, Taos, Union, and Valencia, b!
| fLo arsf Mondou Of 0onforohnr 1Q00