New-York tribune., 1903-02-02
CONNECTICUT ASSESSMENTS.
Experiences of the State municipalities
The Law Ignored.


New-Haven Conn., Feb (SpeciaD.-For many
years it has been a law of the State of Con-
necticut that boards of assessors of the towns
in making up the tax lists must put in property
at its full market value But for long time
the law systematically ignored. and in most
of the 16S towns it remains dead letter still
This breach of the statute has been due to the
fact that up to some years ago the State inn
posed a tax on the grand tax lists of the towns
To avoid the State tax far as possible the
town assessors reduced the valuation, even
though it increased the rate, the towns thus
in effect competing to dodge the State tax ana
fout the law. The State finally, having an
abundance of receipts from other sources
dropped its tax on the towns-though with the
result to some extent, of encouraging Legislative
extravagance-and since then the full assess
ment' has been adopted by number of towns.
A noteworthy example of the old system was
the town of Waterbury, which until lately,
with grand list of about S37.000.Ooh, had
tax rate of 1 per cent 40 mills, based on a
valuation of one-th third.
The transition from a fractional to full val
uation has occasionally been attended by olttef
disputes over the reassessment and these dis
putes in some cases have reached the courts
The most noteworthy instance has been in this
city where the trouble is not yet entirely over.
New -Havens case WIS somewhat peculiar. AL
though il is the largest city in the State, and
rapidly growing, the assessment of realty in an
immense number of cases had remained un-
changed for many years. Property which had
risen to four or five times the value of the
original assessment was never assessed at a
higher figure and property that had fallen in
value received no abatement The outcome was
such confusion and unfairness in old assess
ments that in 1895 general reassessment up
to full value TO be made not by experienced
commission but by the Board of Assessors. was
ordered by a special legislative act The board.
itself unskilled in values, could only undertake
the work during the intervals of regular bust
ness, and although the reassessment extended
through five years it was. in fact, hastily and
cIunlsily done.
The storm that broke over the heads of the
assessors when the reassessment books were
first opened to the public, early in the year
1900 is memorable in the annals of the city
The assessors rooms were thronged for many
days by angry taxpayers, and out of some
twelve thousand in the city almost four thou
sand took appeals from the assessors to the
Beard of Relief. In truth. the new assessment
was filed with absurdities. In one case realty
would be lifted TO two or three times it's market
value in others 1t would fall considerably be-
low. though the latter experience was excep-
tional To remedy one set of grossly unbal-
anced assessments il was clear that the board
had substituted another almost as bad and on
a higher level of valuations.
The appeals to the Board OF Relief brought
only small measure of redress and were fol-
lowed in turn by so many appeals to the Su-
perior Court-appeals allowed under the Con-
necticut Iaw-as threatened TO block all other
cases in the court for years. The Corporation
Counsel of the city fought the appeals strenu-
Jor,r i'm
portance as a reduced assessment for a par
ticuIar property, if ordered by the court, carried
with it. in effect, a similar reduction for the
najghborhood. Hosts of expert witnesses ap-
neared on each side. and, in the absence of
recent sales near the disputed property, the
Judge was in a fog of divergent testimony The
city in the first few suits won substantial
victories, then lost important suit in which
the Judge ordered great reduction, and the
lower court was sustained appeal to the
Supreme Court of the State which later how
ever on a constitutional point, suited the
whole batch of appellants. The latter secured
a healing act and new power of appeal from
the legislature, then sitting, after fierce con-
hict over a bill of a novel character approved
b,, the Neny-Haven Chamber of Commerce had
ended with the defeat of the measure. Its lead
ing feature was offer to SELL property.
which offer, If publicly advertised and not ac-
cepted forced the assessor to reduce the assess
ment to the asked price
Amid the many complications of the situa-
tiou partial relief at last came from city cleo
ton which placed in the Board OF Assessors
new elements more amenable to appeals and to
the consideration of real values. a good many
millions were struck off from the grand list in
reductions. and the reassessment, still greatly
unbalanced is now slowly working itself down
10 a genuine market value basis. but not
without having dealt heavy blow to the real
estate interests of the city In figures the grand
LIST Of the city in 1859, before the new assess
ment. was S66O1S61S with a tax rate of u
mills 1t is now under the reassessment, Sloi,-
569 2S2 with a tax rate of 1874 mills.
The harsh and stormy experiences of New
Haven however. are not typical of those of the
other reassessed municipalities of the State.
some of which have made the change with little
nv no friction either because the reassessment
has been carried through with skill fairness and
tact or because there have been few inequalities
meant exactly, or almost exactly. proportional
reduction in the tax rate 1t is sign1ncaht' also
that the old argument that an increased Valua-
ton constantly tempts municipal rulers TO raise
the new rate !s not heard in this State so loudly
as Il was But In the reassessed towns sum
Client time has not yet elapsed to prove the ar
gunent either true or false. It may be 'addeo
that under the Connecticut statute structures
and the land on which they located are
listed separately.
uo,cr lEaas M'MIILAN EULOGIZED.