Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1904-01-26
RATE IS A MENACE
TAX RATES. DETRIMENT TO THE
WELFARE AND PROSPERITY
OF oTTuMWA.

| l b :
Firm of Fleener. Carnaban 6 Co.,
| Tax Ferrets for WapelIo County,
Says Rate is Great Disadvantage.
While it would be great disadvan-
tage to me in my business it would be
| a great thing for the welfare of Ottum-
wa if her citizens would be honest in
reporting to the assessor correct ac-
count OF their personal property, cred
its and mortgages" said ]. w. Peisen
OF Eldora. member of the firm of
Fleener, Canadian & Co, expert general
accountants, who have been engaged
by Wapello county to ferret out tax
able property which has not been re-
turned by the owners to the assessor
Mr.. Peisen began his work at the court
house several days ago and will be en-
gagged in Wapello county for the next
three or possibly four months.
Under Tax Ferret Law.
The contract between Wapello coun-
ty and the firm with which Mr.. Peisen
is connected was made last April. The
contract was made under what is
known as the tax ferret law and the
firm is allowed free access to all coun-
ty records and is given free rein to
hunt up all taxable property of what
ever nature which for any reason has
been omitted from the assessors
report. The law allows Is per cent Of
the total amount of taxes collected to
be paid as a commission for this
work.
Rate is FriahtfuI.
"Ottumwa's tax rate is something
frightful," said Mr.. Peisen. In answer
to the query. Has any county in the
| state higher rate he replied, 81
know of nene." st is great disadvan-
tage to Ottumwa to have such rate"
he continued, "outside capital in look
ing for place for permanent invest
ment thinks very seriously before 1t
moves into city where the tax rate
is thirty or forty mills higher than
1t ought to be. Our firm has many
calls for information from corpora
tons which are looking for new loca-
lions in the counties where we have
worked.
Dead From High Tax Rate.
eff the people would give in a true
and honest account of their posses
sions, the sum of the total taxable
property would be so large that the
tax per cent might be reduced from
thirty to forty mills. Instead of a re.
port going out that the tax in .Wapello
county is So mills, it might be reported
some where between forty and sixty.
Ottumwa is g. thriving and prosper
ing town. and will no doubt continue
/ as such. but I can name you several
little towns of the state, some of them
not very far from here, that are simply
dead in business way for no other
reason that can be seen than tax rate
and county debt that is up to the
limit,
A Notable Exception.
There is one town in the state
however, about the size of Ottumwa,
where the business men have come to
see this matter in the proper light.
They have come to an understanding
that every person shall be honest and
give in a true account Of his prop
erty. This has been done now for
three or four years, and the result is
/ that the tax rate is low, SO unusually
low that they are constantly getting
new enterprises for this very reason,
and the town is thriving in wonder
full way.
A Low Rate.
] The total amount of taxes paid
by each man in this town is but little
different from what it was before, for
the simple reason that small amount
Of property at high rate will produce
no more revenue than a larger amount
at a proportionately lower rate. They
are collecting just about the same
amount of money there for county ex-
penses as before, but they can show to
prospective enterprises a tax rate that
is as low as the rate in many of the
strictly farm counties of the state.
i Many lniquities.
There are many iniquities con-
nected with our present system of as
sessing property. The great bulk of
our taxes is paid by the people who
own property or business worth from
one to three or four thousand dollars.
A small property holder who has a
house and lot worth say $1,000, is as
sessed at almost its true valuation.
Property worth $4,000 is assessed at
y perhaps $4,000; one worth $4,000 per-
haps $25,0O0, and a corporation worth
| $250,0O0 thinks it is abused if it's val
uation is placed at $4,000.
| Sometimes Go After Corporations.
"Where we are asked to do it, we
go after the corporations and big COM
panies who are not bearing their just
and equitable share of the taxes, but
we generally confine ourselves to hunt
ing up real estate, mortgages and cred
its that for any reason have escaped