The evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1907-1908, 1907-07-08
READY NEXT FRIDAY
TAX ORDINANCE AT NExT
COUNCIL SESSION.
Finishes Their Work and City and
County Boards Will Now Act-Hard
Finding Personal Property.

Finding Personal Property.
When Common Council meets next Fri
day night the annual tax ordinance will
be introduced, and IT will be up to the
Aldermen to complete their part OF the
work in fixing the rate that the property
owners will have 10 pay. The city and
county tax boards are now busy settling
on the ratables for this and other NUM-
clpalities of Essex County. and the tax
rates will be definitely decided on the
specified statutory day in August.
The financial and tax officials are BOTH
cred not a little In their efforts TO hnd
personal property. A table that has beer
prepared by City Auditor George Forman
and submitted for consideration at THIS
tlmo shows that during thirty-five years
ending last year. personal property tax
values for Newark have increased from
S25, 270,04 to $40, 101. 304. while real estate
showed a assessed valuation of Nl,76f,ezo
in 1871 and of $3.50. sol ,926 In 1905.
Approximately real estate has grown IN
taxable value $50 per cent, while there mas
been a growth OF but 80 per cent. In the
value of personality on the tax books OF
the city. In 1871 the total assessed value
OF realty was less than three times as
great as the personality, while the figures
for 1906 show that the real estate tax values
were five and one-third times as great az
the total value of personal property as
sessed.
The opinion has been frequently ex-
pressed by local taxing officials that the
actual taxable value Of personal property
in the city, II 1t could be reached, would be
equivalent to the value of realty. The
comparisons show Enthusiastically that the
personal tax question is growing more
serious year by year, and that the city is,
or has been, really losing ground on that
score.
In the thirty-five-year period cited,
there have been years. 1901 for example.
when the personal property values hav
fallen off as much as $3.000,0 900 from the
previous year. The city is practically at
the mercy of the owner of personality
under present methods, for as a last re-
sort the personal taxpayer car swear off
the assessments against him.
Personal property can be iuggled to an
extent that is-to the uninitiated, at least
remarkable. On May 20, the day that
the tax authorities, under the law. begin
their work and the date on which a prop
erty owners taxable values are determined
for the year. there are more non-assess-
able securities In the possession of rich
men and big companies than at any other
time during n twelvemonth. Al on May
90 Is the way the property values are
fixed.
Many financial houses are parties to the
sales of non-taxables that assist the tax
dodgers. and there is a big rake-off in the
plan for them in brokerage. The city
fathers have long considered the drafting
of some measure that might be enacted
into law by the Legislature to make impos-
sible the conversion of taxable property
into ~non-taxables for a short period to
get dodgers over taxing time.
Last year when the increase in realty
values was more than $50. 900, 600 over those
of 1905. the advance in personality was not
quite IS, 600, 600. Even so, the increase ex-
ceeded by more than $1,000, 600 the adj
vance of any other year in the fcity's
history.
The City Tax Board undertook this year
to land the personal property owners on
a new tack. Prior to May 20 about 5000
statements were prepared, each fixing an
arbitrary assessment of personally for the
person to whom they were to be sent.
These were mailed withsa circular letter
TO the effect that unless the recipients ap-
peared In the tax office at the City Hall
before June 30 the assessed values fixed
would remain against their names and
they would be respo lsible for taxes on
those figures.
There have been more interested persons
at the tax Office to see Secretary Noah
Gutter. Chief Clerk William D. Ward and
their assistants ms a result of these let
tiers than ever put in an appearance before.
The result will be an increase In per-
sonalty that will be above the average, IL
not so great as that of 1905 over 1905.
Members of the Tax Board say that they
look for an advance of IS, 000,0 900 in per-
sonal property values this year.
In the nine years following the panic of
1873, Newark's personal property values
shrunk about $11, 900. 900, going as low as
SIG, 1000 Swearing off has been very
popular since those days, but not since the
year of 70 itself had there been o
than $1,000, 900 sworn off until last years
record surpassed all others with 1884. 925
of personality sworn Off.
The Essex County Tax Board has de-
claIed its purpose of getting an Increase
In personally throughout the county and
to this end there are Utmost daily confer
ences between President Lathrop Ander-
son of that body and President John Howe
of the Newark Board. In addition to the
thousands of statements sent out. the
authorities are using sleuth methods of
getting next" to the taxable property.
1t was a serious jolt for the plans of the
officials when the Public Service Corpora
ton indicated that 1t would pay less taxes
than last year. An official of the corpora
ton said last night that the position of
the p. S. G.. seemed to be misunderstood
Continuing, he said:
I'm 1906 the City Tax Board, following
the issuance of our sworn statement, fixed
arbitrarily and additional assessment on
our property which we consented to pay.
Our statement this year shows. a consist
ent increase over the figures OF last year
bat does not. of course, include that
arbitrary addition Of 1905. There Is no
reason why we should consider IT.