The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1904-09-12
MAKE INLAND EMPIRE PAY HIGH
TAXES is PRAYER OF KING
COUNTY.
Want the Wheat Raisers Of Eastern
Washington to Bear the Heavy
Burden.

OLYMPIA. Wash. Sept. liking
county and Seattle, have come to the
state board of equalization this year
with inflated valuations on city lots,
with tidelands assessed at specula-
tive figure. but with the railroads
valued at the low rate of 1882 a mile
for the main lines and ask that the
state board cut their valuations for
state taxing purposes nearly six mil
lion dollars.
The appearance of the King county
representatives before the board today
was characterized by the assertion
that Seattle property had been excess
sively valued as assessed valuations
go, in order to further extend the
bonding credit of the city, and by the
demand that to obtain an increased
basis for taxation the state board
should raise the valuations placed by
county boards on the wheat lands of
eastern Washington.
Alleged Inflated Valuations.
They declared that the county board
had assessed much of the property of
Seattle at so per cent of its cash value,
and none of it at less than from so to
60 per cent. it's market value: that
tie have been assessed for all they will
sell for today, and that the county
board of equalization has raised the
valuation of tide lands about $1,000
600 above the figures as returned by
The assessor. which property has real
Iy been assessed at a speculative fig
ure, and that there is in sight now in
Seattle a lot of litigation over collect
ion of taxes on recent valuations.
Throws Burden On TO the Farmers.
They claim they can substantiate
their statement that many counties in
eastern Washington have made their
assessments on basis of % per cent.
of the full value of farms, improve
ments on town lots, live stock and
other things. and that eastern WASH
ington generally is escaping taxation
on millions of bushels of wheat and
on millions of dollars lying idle in the
a rule being made by the assessor to
the county or state of either wheat
or money. The King county men claim
that the state does not receive any
revenue from wheat crops, as they
are harvested and shipped away at a
time of year when the assessor is
through with his work, While in all
western Washington counties the tim
Der crop which comes only once in 70
years. is assessed annually.
They said to the state board that
King county and the counties of west
ern Washington generally are of the
opinion that the farmers and business
men of eastern Washington are be
coming wealthy year after year, while
the farmers of western Washington are
stance, the present wheat crop of
Whitman county will be equal to a sum
that would, at the present assessed
valuations, buy outright every foot of
land and all the improvements in
those counties, and that in general the
valuations are fixed by county boards
on lands in eastern Washington at
much less than those in western Wash
ingtOn.
Seattle and King county therefore
ask that the assessment on wheat pro-
ducing lands Of eastern Washington
should be materially raised by the
state board Of equalization. They made
the request that their. figures on town
and city lots be reduced to the same
valuations as returned last year, which
would make a reduction of $5,747, 49S
from the returns of this year