Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1903-08-19
INACCURATE ASSESSMENTS OF
PROPERTY,

PROPERTY.
Governor Herreid of South Dakota,
in q recent interview, calls attention
to a condition that exists in North
Dakota. and perhaps in the great
majority of the states of the union,
the faulty system of assessment Of
property, under which a large valua-
ton Of property escapes taxation alto
gether. Other classes of property are
i~nsuficiently valued. The fact that
assessment is done by so many asses
sors, and that there are so many In
terests working to see that no city or
community pays upon a greater valua-
ton than any other community. is res
ponsible for much of the difficulty.
The constitutions of both North and
South Dakota provide that property
shall be assessed at its full and true
value in money and the farcical nature
of which is evident from the fact that
Red River Valley lands-worth $35 to
$50 an acre-are assessed for an aver
age Of less than Sc an acre. Bank
stock in many counties Of the state
was assessed at a %ridiculously low fg.
ure, and much personal property not
assessed at all. Governor Herreid
up the conditions in South Da-
kota when he says:
Three years study of the assess
ment returns, as a member of the state
board of equalization and assessment.
has convinced me that our present
methods for raising revenue by ssess
mcnts made by several hundred asses
sors, each a law unto himself. comes
dangerously near being a farce. The
state board is utterly helpless regard
ing most of the personal property
schedules. The constitution and the
laws require all property to be listed
and assessed at the full value. While
the equaized returns viii show about
$215,000, 900, if all the assessable
property was listed at it's full value
We should probably have 81 ,O00, 0oO, 900.
Real estate is assessed al from half
Its vaue in some of the northwestern
counties to one-fourth actual value in
the older portions of the state a dis.
crepancy which is gradually disappear.
ing; personal property at from one.
third to %one-fourth of its actual value.
But the great mass of personal prop.
erty does not appear on the assessors
books at all.
ITO illustrate: One of the largest
n richest counties returns only
$1,000 of household goods. One large
county returns only s945, one 1910, one
$500, one $1S9. and one nothing at all
In a great many counties there are
no watches, no jewelry, and no gold
n silver plate, etc. Many large, rich
counties make no returns whatever OF
credits other than Of banks, and mon
eys of individuals is merely nominal
or none at all. The richest county
in the state returns only $500. one
county 1867, one $237, and one of the
largest and richest counties not a dol
lar! Sometimes the goods and mcr
chandise returned for a county is less
thar the stock of some individual
storekeeper. Thousands of head Of
horses, sheep and cattle are not list
ed and escape taxation.
THE system of assessment is defec
tive in its operation. The taxpayer
knows that nearly everybody is very
timid when the assessor is around, ant
acts accordingly. Every assessor trie.
to protect his neighbors and his towns
people. and every county board trie,
to guard its county from paying NOR.
than its share, and the fruit is-re
turns showing a valuation Of. abou
one-fifth of the actual valuation II
the state"