Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1902-09-26
New Law Does Away with
Ancient System Township
Contractors Hereafter
ROAD TAX PAYABLE IN MONEY
Township Trustees Will Make Neces-
sary Levy in the spring-No District
Road Supervisors to Be Elected This
relationship District Plan Estab-
lished.
Special to Times-Republican.

| Des Moines, Sept. 26.-The first eff
feet of the act of the last state legisla-
ture abolishing the time -honored office
of road supervisors will be seen at the
of road supervisors has been one of the
features of election day in the country
precincts since almost as far back as
the memory of any Iowan runneth, but
with the election this fall the half dozen
or more little ballot boxes labeled for
each road district in the township will
disappear from the precinct polls. The
last legislature did away with the null
titudinous district road supervisors and
in place provided that one road super
intendent or contractor for each town
ship shall be chosen by the township
board of trustees at their annual meet
ing in April.
The consolidation of all the road dis
tricts in each township into one dis
trict identical with the township Is to
be made by the board of trustees at
their meeting next April, the following
provision for such action being incor-
porated in the new road district law,
chapter 53, section 4, of the acts Of
the Twenty-ninth general assembly:
THE board of township trustees of
each civil township in this state, at its
regular meeting in April, 1903, shall
consolidate said township into one road
district, and all road funds belonging to
the road districts of SAID township shall
at once become general township road
fund, out of which all claims for work
done or material furnished for road
purposes prior to the change, and I'M
settled, shall be paid"
Must Pay Cash.
With the abolition Of the road dis
tricts, the legislature also made an
other innovation which is planned to
result in the betterment of the roads of
the state, and that Is the payment of
property road taxes in cash. Formerly
the privilege obtained OF allowing the
taxpayer to have his taxes worked
out" on the road. but hereafter this tax
must be paid in cash to the county
treasurer along with other taxes. With
the creation of this cash road fund to
be expended by the township road SUI
perintendent under the direction of the
township board of trustees, the latter
will be required to give an itemized
statement to the board of supervisors
lures of their road fund In accordance
with section Is of the new law.
Trustees to Fix Levy.
The township trustees will, after next
April, be reqired to fix levy for town
ship road purposes to be assessed the
coming year. The expenditures must
then be within the proceeds of this.
levy. Heretofore the board of trustees
have at their April meeting simply fix
ed the sum that it would expend dur
ing the year on the roads.
Under the new law the township
clerk is given additional duties and is
required to prepare the annual road tax
list Section 6 says that the township
clerk shall within four weeks after the
trustees have levied the property tax
for the succeeding year, certify said
levy to the county auditor, who shall
enter it upon the tax books for collec-
ton by the county treasurer as other
taxes. And he shall. not later than the
18th day OF April, make out and deliver
to the superintendent OF roads a list of
all persons required to pay road poll
tax under the provisions OF this act. To
enable him to make out such lists, the
assessor shall furnish the clerk of said
township, before the first day of April
each year, complete copy Of the as
sessment lists Of said township for that
year, which shall be the basis of such
poll tax lists. Provided that the prop
erty road tax for the year 1903 shall be
levied as heretofore, that 1t shall be
paid in cash and shall be collected by
the superintendent of roads appointed
by the trustees or the township clerk,
as the board of trustees shall determine
and direct