Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1903-01-19
IS ASSESSED 100 LOW
Assessment of Real Estate in
Iowa Has Been at Too Low
Valuation
TENDENcYHAsBEEN DOWNWARD
TENDENcYHAsBEEN poWNWARn
Railroad Companies Use Farm Land
Assessments to Show Why Their
Properties Should Not Be Taxed
Hisher-Executive Council Anxious
to Increase Railway Assessments.
Special to Tlmes-Republican.


Des Moines, Jan. 19.-The biennial
assessment Of real estate in Iowa has
just been begun and upwards of 1000
assessors will travel about over the
farms within the next two months and
place valuations on the farm land of
the state. For quite number of years
1t is notorious that the totals of the
real estate assessment have been de-
creasing. The law contemplates that
the actual value of the land shall be
ascertained and recorded and the as
sessable value shall be put down at 20
per cent of this as a basis for taxa
tion. The general revenues of the state
largely depend upon this assessment
and as real estate assessment is made
only once in two years 1t is regarded as
especially important that there shall be
no deficiency in the assessment this
year. The state officials, and especially
members of the state executive coun-
Gil, are deeply interested in the assess
ment. If it should fall below the esti-
mates on which the appropriations We're
made last year there might be some en-
barrassment. II the assessment is kept
up and some advance made 1t will mean
large sums for the state educational
institutions from the permanent levies.
But far more important than this, espe-
cially to the executive council. is the
bearing which the present real estate
assessment will have upon the assess
ment OF railroad and other corporation
property in July Of this year and next
year When the executive council fixed
the railroad assessment last July at
little more than $4,000, 900, making an
increase OF $4,000,000 over the assess
rnent OF the previous year, this was
done after the representatives of the
companies had tried hard to show that
already the railroad property was as
sessed higher In proportion to its actual
value and earning capacity than the
average OF other property in Iowa or OF
Iraal estate. Unless the real estate as
sasan,snt shows some :n.crease this year
commensurate with the we'll known
and boasted enormous increase of prop
erty values in the state it will be. a difii-
cult matter for the executive council to
Justify another increase in the assess
ment OF railroad property. 1t is well
known INaL lHt COui.SAAt eSs'AA ~ 'fS-s
much to make substantial increase
each year and every year In the aggre-
gate of railroad assessments until they
shall approximate actual values.
At the hearing before the council last
year almost the entire argument Tor ana
against an increase of assessments
turned on the relative assessment OF
other property. When the members OF
the council indicated that they intended
to apply the law strictly to railroad
pronerty without regard to other as
sessments it was shown that the law
contemplates equality and an apsoiute
fairness in taxation. and this could not
be had If railroad property was 70 pe
assessed at % per cent of It's ac'ua1
yalue while real estate is assessed at q
less percentage of its value. Ine' arsu-
ment proved to be unanswerable before
the council and the railroad assessment
was held down below what 1t would
otherwise have been. AS supporting
their contention that the real estate
assessments are not m fact 20 per cens
of the actual values of land, the rail-
road men presented some interesting
Information. The Rock Island railroad,
sfor instance. procured from the records
of land sales last year statement OF
the actual value of lalids trans1erreu IA
certain representative counties, togelh-
er with the actual assessed value OF the
same lands as shown by the tax books.
This showing was as follows, Drleny
put: