Perth Amboy evening news., 1904-04-30
ENFORCEMENT
OF TAX LAWS.
State Board Of Taxation to Send
Out Circular Letters Re-
garding Assessment.
PERSONAL PROPERTY

Trenton, Apr. 30:-The State Ia
Board is going to enforce the collec'
ton of personal taxes in all counties
of this State. under laws passed last
year and this year, and even money
in bank is not to be exempt from as
sessment. Those holding personal
property must make affidavit. if called
npon to do SO, as to the amount OF
their property.
The State Board will in q day or
two send out the following circular
to all assessors and collectors:
"The Legislature of 1908 passed n
general revision anu codification of
the tax laws entitled, AN Act for
the Assessment and Collection of
Taxes This act went into effect De-
cember 20, 1903, and with annota-
tions, blanks, etc, was included in
the report of the State Board Of Taxa
tion for 1908, a copy of which was
sent to every assessor and collector in
the State. The legislature of 1904
has made a few changes in this law,
all of which will be found in the en-
closed leafiet.
"Section Q of the act of 1908 pro
vides that all property, real AMI per-
sonal, within the jurisdiction of this
State, o expressly exempted by tn is
act or excluded from its operation,
shall be subject to annual taxation at
IT'S true value under this act Each
and every assessor is required to take
affidavit to the duplicate, that the
foregoing list contains the valuations
mad. by me, to the best of my ability,
for all Of the property liable TO taxa
tion in the taxing district in which l
am assessor and that / have
valued the same without favor or
pa TALLY, at its full and fair value,
at such price as in my Judgment it
would sell for at o fair sale by private
contract on the twentieth day of May
In addition to this section 60 furth er
provided that any assessor who shall
wilfully or through gross negligence
omit to make a full and fair valuation
Of all property taxable in his taxing
district within the time prescribed
By law, or to prepare and produce his
list and his duplicate at the time re-
quired by law, shall be guilty of a
misdemeanor.'
"As stated by Mr.. Justice Lippin-
colt: THE duty is q plain one-to
assess property uniformly and at its
true value. There exists no such
thing as a 20 per cent, or m 80 or 80
per tent. value. 1t is the true value
under all the circumstances and sur
roundings Of the property. and when
ever a public officer, whose duty it is
to assess, wilfully fixes a higher duty
or q lower value than the true one, it
is a neglect Of public duty and a mis-
conduct in office. 1t is then wilful
malfeasance or misfeasance, and tho
liability of q public official is the
same In both cases.
ut is sometimes urged in extenua-
ton of the custom of the under valua-
ton that it can work no harm so long
as all the property in the taxing DIS
trict is assessed at a uniform percent
age of true value. but it is rarely that
a definite percentage is selected or
adhered to. 1t not only leads to valua-
ton based solely ON arbitrary figures,
but it results in the grossest Unequal
tiles in the apportionm emit Of the
county taxes, for the assessor of one
taxing district NAV assess property at
ohe-third of it's value, the assessor in
a n~eighboring taxing district may as
sess at one-half or ~one-fourth, and still
another at double the value.
Continued on page 4