The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1905-12-28
In an Open Letter to the Taxpay-
ers Supervisor Harrison
States Some Facts
HOW KENOSHAL LEVY WAS MADE
The Supervisor of Assessments is Evil
IDENTIFY Laboring Under the Inn
preston That the Apportion-
ment Was Fair to the City
To the Taxpayers Of Kenosha County.

To the Taxpayers of Kenosha County,
or to whom it may concern:
AS it is time for paying taxes
and having some inquiries as to how
the county board arrived at their con-
illusions, desire to inform them
through your columns as the pro-
ceedings of the county board will not
be ready for distribution until the lat
ter part of March, 1906, and as my
attention has also been called to an
article in one of your former issues
which stated: ''The assessment COM
mittee of the county board after ten
DAYS of work rendered its report to
the board at it's session on Friday,
and the report will be of interest to
the taxpayers in all parts of the
county,
Taking the cue from reports of
other years, the committee has made
the usual boost in the assessment of
the city, the amount of the increase
being nearly $4,000. Kenosha has
company in the boost among the
towns of the county, but when 1t is
stated that the assessed value of the
property in the county is less than
year ago, it will be seen that large
burden has been placed on the city.
All of which is misleading. All the
districts in the county got a boost,
some more than others, according to
improvements and other conditions
which you will find an explanation of
in my annual report in special table.
The assessor that copies from the roll
year after year is not complying with
the law, and it would be aspremium
on evasion of the law to take his fig
ures.
The committee on assessments met
on Thursday, Nov %, at II O'Clock,
and in less than one-half hour had
agreed to adopt the supervisors re-
port of true values found by both the
personal inspection test and sale
value test. They added the two to-
gether and took the average Of them,
and added the true value of the per-
sona1 property Of each district, as
found by the supervisor, to such re-
suits as were found by above methods
which constituted the total true value
of said districts. Sixty-three per cent
of said amounts was fixed upon as the
amount for each district las was done
one year ago, except at that time they
used 70 per cent of said supervisors
full values), The report of the COM
mittee was unanimous and was
adopted by the board inside of half an
hour. AS to that. committee agreeing
to anything that would favor any dis
trict is preposterous. The idea of
such men as John Lane, Henry +.
Jordan, Hubert Schwan, George Kreu-
sher and John T. Tigh agreeing to
anything they did not think was as
near right as was possible to get it.
No one thinks it that knows the men,
and in fact do not believe that any
member of the county board felt that
he wanted to be unjust to any district.
The supervisor from Randall voted
against the report for personal
reasons. AS for the assessed values
Of the county being less than in 1904,
it is not.
Total assessed value for 1904 was
S22, 3l5 735; total assessed value for
1905 was $22, 649, 348.
am aware that some of the dis
tricts, including the city, do not fol-
low the increase in values. You will
note by consulting my report in spec
al table that the assessors did not in
crease the values enough in the city
district to cover new mprovements,
say nothing of the increase in value
of other property. believe that the
Kenosha district is the lowest under
my findings of true value according
to her worth than any other district
ia the county.
The same will apply to former
article by your city CORES pondent
wherein he claimed the state equaliza-
ton board had raised Kenosha county
Just a small per cent more than ad-
joining counties.
Let us see what the facts are. In
1904, the state apportionmeut for Ke-
nosha county was 1T Of the total
value of the whole state. Her in
crease over 1904 by state board was
1,136,000 approximately. If she had
gotten III raise Of the total increase
in the state, she would have been
raised 81, 43O, 900, instead of 1,136, 900.
desire to have the taxpayers know
the facts and not be misled by some
corresp pendent. do not believe there
is taxpayer in the county who thinks
for a moment that the rietors of
the TELEGRAg COURIER conntenance
anything so misleading. After four