Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1904-11-05
Gan NOW Be
PROSECUTED
Law For Punishment of County
Officials Refusing to Com
ply With Statute
THE TELEPHONE ASSESSMENTS
Linn County Officials Last Year Es-
capped Part of Their Responsibility
and the Attention of the Judiciary
Committee of the Senate Was Called
to This Defiance Of the Law.


to This Defiance Of the Law.
Special to Times Republican.
Des Moines, Nov. 5.-Clerks in the
office of State Auditor Carroll have all
ready charged up to Linn county the
state taxes due on the legal assessment
of all telephone lines and all telephone
property in that county. AS soon as
the value Of property for taxing pur-
poses is fixed by the local assessors and
review. boards and on certain classes OF
property by the state assessing poard'
the state auditor makes a computation
Of the amount of tax due the state at
the rate fixed by the state executive
council and each county Is required
to remit this sum, only less the de-
ductions because of remission OF taxes
on property locally assessed. Inc
books of the state now show certain
amounts due from Linn county ON ac-
count of telephone property assessed.
The county will be required to remit
this sum. If the county does not col
lect it from the owners of telephone
lines then it will have to come from
other taxpayers. But the state Off
cials are determined that Linn county
officials shall not this year escape their
responsibility. and the matter will be
watched very closely. Last year some
of the telephone lines in Linn were not
taxed after they had been assessed, and
the attention Of the judiciary commit
tee of the senate was called to this
defiance of the laws with view to
providing whatever legislation might
be needed to punish the offenders.
sub committee reported that the law
Is ample now for the punishment OF
county officials who refuse to comply
with the law. They may be criminally
prosecuted If there Is anybody in the
county desirous Of having the laws
obeyed.
Secretary A. H. Dawson, of the state
executive council. has just returned
from trip outside of the state, and
his attention was called to the action
taken in Linn county refusing to tax
certain of the telephone lines assess
ed. '"The executive council" he stat
ed, would be glad if 1t had the dis
cretion to omit assessment of farmer
lines or those not used for CONNER
cial purposes. In fact, an amendment
to the law was urged providing for
such discrimination. Members of the
council wanted 1t fixed so that the
only companies reporting should be
the commercial lines, and they alone
should be assessed. But the legisla-
tors fatty refused. 1t was represent
ed that discrimination might invalidate
the entire law. But members were also
opposed on principle, and then prob
ably some were interested in CONNER
cial lines. AS the law has been left
there is no discretion lodged In the
executive council. The law is very
plain. Reports must be secured from
every telephone line in the state, no
matter if it is farm line or privately
owned. and they must be assessed. The
law even goes the length of requiring
that the council shall take into con-
sideration all property made use of by
a telephone company. Some had evad-
ed assessment of the telephones by
claiming the phones were owned by
persons who used them. But the law
made it necessary for the council to
include these in the assessment to the
lines Neither is there any discretion
in the board of supervisors, and the
board cannot remit taxes of this kind.
Certainly the state officials would be
very glad to be relieved of the duty OF
collecting reports from nearly 1000
separate companies or lines or persons,
and making an assessment, which TAX
es weeks of time, but so long as the law
remains unchanged it will have to be
done. 1t is the legislature not the
council which has laid down the law"
1t is regarded as little doubtful IT
the Temple amendment for>increasing
the size of the house of representa-
tives will be adopted by the voters of
the state next week. Substantially the
same proposition was voted down six
wears ago when the other Temple "a
mendment came before the voters.
That amendment was approved by the
26th and 9th general assemblies and
came to a vote November s, 1898. 1t
received 33,S72 votes to 76,931 against
II. The amendment provided for in
creasing the membership of the house
to 115, while the present amendment
would increase it to 10S. This will give
nine counties two members each un-
der certain conditions. While it will
be favored in the smaller counties it
will be opposed in the larger counties.
81 shall go home to vote against this
amendment said Wesley Greene, Of
Davenport. 81 do not believe the
house of representative ought to be in
Creased at all. The legislature is too
large now. If the legislature had pro-
vided there should be one member to
each and every county that would have
been all right. 1t would have left
Just one county to have two, and that
might be given to the capital county
Of the state. No possible arrange
ment could be made that would be
equitable as between the counties A
legislature with 108 members will be
no fairer than one with 1Q0.'
A letter from Thomas c. Dawson.