Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1905-08-06
TAXATION AND REPRESENTA- TON

TON AND REPRESENTAIIDN.
A cursory glance at the grand assess
ment roll just completed by the State
Board Of Equalization is decidedly in
structive as well as suggestive.
The aggregate taxable wealth Of Ne
braska, including the railroads, is com
puted at 81 ,522, O96, 7O31O which, divided
by ., places the assessed value Of all tax
able property in the state at S3O4, 49,
34O.82. On this valuation the total rev
enue for the maintenance of state gov
eminent including fraction over S304,-
600. to he applied toward the repayment
Of the state debt. aggregates $2,13O,-
1888. Apportioned among the various
counties in ratio with their assessed val
uation, Douglas county comes in for
$2OS,035.11, or approximately one-tenth
of the entire sum 70 he raised by taxa
ton for state purposes.
From every point of view Douglas
county's contribution toward state gov
eminent is out of all proportion to its
allotment Of political patronage, or rep
resentation in the various departments
Of state commandments judicial
and legislative.
In the executive department Douglas
county is represented by the lieutenant
governor. an officer who draws just $500
out Of the state treasury for two years
services, and plays wall flower most OF
the time, unless the governor who is
usually a robust person, should resign,
die, receive promotion to a seat in the
United States senate or appointment to
n lucrative federal position.
In the judicial department Douglas
county has been favored with one SUI
preme court commissioner, recorder of
the court and a supreme court bailiff.
In the legislative department the con-
trast between taxation and representa-
ton is even more disproportionate. Ian
caster county, for example, which will
pay into the state treasury 500, 1886
in taxes next year, is represented by two
senators and FIVE members of the house,
while Douglas county, which is to pay
$20S, 93511, is represented by only three
senators and nine members of the house.
Lancaster and Cass counties together,
which are taxed an aggregate of $780,
$3.50, have the same representation in
the senate that Douglas county has al
though Douglas county pays $40, 1000
more into the state treasury. Cass and
Otoe, which pay together $1O5, 1907, are
represented by two senators and FIVE
members in the house. Buffalo and
Sherman, with $40, 1880, are repre-
scented by one senator, and Adams
county, which is taxed only S36,217 90,
is represented by one senator At the
same ratio Douglas county would be en-
titled to six senators. Adams, Cass and
OtOe counties together have three sena-
tors, although they pay only $141 1873 73,
against $685. 1851 paid by Douglas
These discrepancies of representation
are still more glazing when comparison
is made with relative populations of the
legislative districts.
The proportion of Douglas county's
contribution toward the maintenance of
state institutions affords very interesting
study also. While Douglas county has
been favored with only one secondary
state charitable institution, namely, the
School for the Deaf, maintained at about
$4,000 per annum, the contribution of
Douglas county toward the maintenance
of the State university will aggregate
$4,000 for the coming year on the 1-mill
tax and fully $4,000 more for its pro
rata covering the general aggregate of
expense. The state benevolent institu-
tons which require an aggregate of
100000 a year for maintenance will
take $4,000 from Douglas county.
These figures should convince the peo-
pie Of Nebraska that Douglas county is
an important factor in supplying funds
for the maintenance Of state government
and state institutions, and it goes with
out saying that Omaha to all intents
stands for Douglas county, so far as tax
alton is concerned. The value of its
growth in wealth and population to the
rest Of the state must be apparent to all
who have given the subject the slightest
consideration.