Bisbee daily review., 1906-05-26
MINING CLAIM TAXATION IN
 COLORADA
Final Decision By State Su- preme Court in Teller Coun- ty Cases Decides important Question for Mine Owners.
Assessors Plan of Assessment Was in Some Respects Nov el, and Was Based Upon Market Value of Stock.

DENVER, May .25.-By a num- Der of decisions handed down a few days ago by the State Supreme Court the Teller county tax cases, involving a large number of mines have been finally settled in favor of the mine owners. Practically all of the mines
 in Teller county were originally in volved in this dispute. M. B Lysight, county assessor, since deceased, placed valuation upon mining prop critics considerably in excess of the valuations usually made under the pro visions of the state law, and also greater than the assessed valuation of similar properties in other counties. This assessment, If 1t had stood, would have compelled Teller county to bear a disproportionately large share of the burden Of the state taxation. AS pro vided by law, the mine owners ap- pealed from the assessor to board of county commissioners and the board sustained the assessor. Appeal was made then taken from the commis- sioners to the District Court and this court decided in favor of the mine owners by ordering reduction of the assessment The assessor and con- missioners appealed from the District Court. A decision on this appeal was rendered by the Court of Appeals about two years ago, and similar ruling has been made in the decisions just handed down by the State Su- preme Court The cases in which the decision was rendered by the higher court are as follows:
 The Board of County Commission. CTS of Teller County vs, The Pinnacle Gold Mining Company, and M. D. Ly. sight, County Assessor, and Board of County Commissioners of Teller Coun, ty ys The C., K. & N. Mining Com pany, dismissed.
 The Supreme Court coincided with 1 the Court of Appeals in the reason given for the dismissal of the case. In the opinion of both courts there is nc appeal under the law in such cases from the District Court, and the de | cision of the latter is final. All of the cases are dismissed for lack of juris diction.
 NIT. Lysight's plan of assessment was in some respects novel. In the as | sessment of producing mines he fol lowed the plan laid down in the stat ! utes, but upon unproductiye territory | or Uotn producers and non-producers | he placed an additional value. His vol"n+iop was based in part upon the ! market price of the stock of the com pany owning the land, and in part upon the location of the land with ref erence to certain of the most produc tive mines of the district. Around several centers, such as the Portland and the Victor, he drew concentdiC | circles, and he assessed the property acording to a kind of a zone system The refusal of the courts to allow ths | Lysight valuation puts Teller cuonty on basis of equality with the othel counties of the state.
 1 Under the Colorado law, mininl claims for purposes of assessment ar divided into two clases-producinl and non-producing. At the time Mir lLysight was assessor, non-producint mining claim was legally defined as claim whose production was less thai S1 900. At the present time the lav defines non-producing claim as on, whose annual production is less thai s5,000. Non-producing claims ar, given an assessed valuation of one fourth of $5,000, which amounts t
 s1,250. The law provides that pro
 
 Isessed valuation of one-fourth of tn Igross proceeds of their production The net proceeds are defined as tn gross proceeds less the cost of ez ltracting the ore from the mine, shiI
 ping it 10 reduction plant, and tn
 cost of treatment. The law furthe
 provides that if the net proceeds ea
 cee6 one-fourth of the gross proceed
 the assessed valuation of the clair
 shall be the amount of the net pro
 ceeds. If, for example, the gross pro
 ceeds from the~aaRaal production c
 a mine are 100000, the essesse valuation of that mine, under the law
 will be s250,000 if the latter amount
 greater than the net proceeds. SuI pose, however, that the cost of takin
 the ore from the mine, the freigh , charges together amount to only $500 ] 900, then the net proceeds of the min would be s700,000 and the assesse : valuation, under the law, would b s7O0, 900.
 An aditional interest to the Colorad . law providing for the taxation of mil
 ing claims is given at the present tim by the fact that a number of minin
 companies want to have assessment 1 in mining drainage districts made o
 the same basis. It is proposed { make producing -.and non producin
 mining claims, and all other propert in the district, bear their part of tn
 expense of constructing drainage tul inels; every one contributing aceordin | to the assessed valuation of his pro
 erty under the state law.
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