Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1905-12-11
EXPECT MOVE FROM BROWN
Has for Some Time Contemplated PrOSsCu-
tion ofAss.ssment officials
NOT ESTABLISHED FARMS ARE TOO Low
IL such should Prove 60 ne the Case
Amendment 60 Revenue Law VIII
AHord Opportunity 60
Bring IL Up.
CFrom a star Correspondent

|
| LINCOLN Dec l0.-Cspecial. )-should At
torney General Brown consider It expedient
to institute proceedings against county
officers who made inadequate assessments
of real estate It will cause but little
surprise among his closest friends, who
| have known for sometime that he stood
ready to prosecute officials who were so
| disregardful OF their oaths that they al
lowed property to go on the assessment
| lists at less than the real value. This
! impartial attitude OF the attorney gen.
eral is backed up by Governor Mickey,
who has asserted ever since the new law
was framed that its penalties were in
| tended to safeguard its enforcement.
Neither Brown nor the governor were
| anxious to assess the railways unfairly
and they were DESTROYS Of having all other
! property properly listed.
However, It is not yet regarded as a
certainty that realty and other property
is assessed too low. The railway conten-
| ton has been that the farms and live
stock of the farmers have been assessed
at far too low a figure, but that theory
has been questioned. except in a few coun-
| ties. Taking the entire realty Of a county
the valuation does not come up to the
expectation OF the person who bases his
estimates on the sale valuations of few
| choice tracts. In each county there is
more or less undesirable land Much of
the land was assessed at a high enough
figure two years ago and under the pro-
visions of the law these valuations must
stand for a four-year period. Since the
first assessment period land has been
rapidly increasing in value and II is prob
able that there are many instances where
1t1aNf Nv, h,. Ill, 4,
figures on which the assessor based his
entries. This is the fault of the provl-
sion for a quadrennial assessment period,
but the railways cannot complain of that
because the entire revenue law was helped
along by them and the four-year assess
ment scheme was designed by them to
catch realty owners
May Level I'D.
II is pointed out that the testimony of
county officials in the railway tax cases
comes at an opportune time, since It will
enable the State Board of Equalization and
Assessment to take the proper steps to
have all OF the undervalued property as
sessed at the right figure. The original
revenue act, as adopted by the legislature
Of 1908, provided no change from the quad
| rennial assessment figures Fortunately
the last Legislature, in accordance with the
recommendations of Governor Mickey
amended the statute so as to permit Of
changes to bring the assessment of realty
to the right figures. whether up or down.
The new section provides that "in cases
of evident error of assessment or of ap-
parent gross injustice in generalization or
differentiation of real property. the county
board of equalization may at Sny of its
annual meetings consider and correct the
same by raising, after due notice has been
given to the interested party or parties, or
by lowering the assessed valuation of such
real property" a-
| When the time comes for the county
boards of the counties to equalize for 1906
1t is likely that 3tf9 state board win take
steps to insure thstlthe realty in the coun-
ties where it has been testified to be low is
raised to the proper figure. Should that
! fail, the state board can, under it's power
to equalize by classes. add the necessary
! percentage to the valuation of the real es-
tate of each county. 1t has been the I'M
| failing purpose of Governor Mickey and
other members of the state board to in
sure that all of the property of the state
was assessed according to lC y and with
] the proper evidence at hand there is little
| question but that the board would take
prompt steps to insure honest compliance
| with the law.
Does siser Seek Mathews Place.
Lincoln politicians are wondering
| whether Postmaster E. r. SEer will be
J a candidate for the federal vacancy due
| to the enforced retirement OF United
| States Marshal Mathews. His salary as
| postmaster is 5000 a year and it has
been believed that he would be reap
! pointed despite the little break between
/ him and Senator Burkett in the last state
] convention, since reconciliation has
! taken place. 1t Is on the friendship of
! Burkett for Szer that the politicians are
basing their predictions that Sizer may
| be a factor, should the president refuse
a reconsideration of his action in favor
! of Mathews. Sizer has been ambitious for
a paymastership in the army, but it is
asserted that he would be satisfied to
secure the marshals ONCE.