The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1908-08-07
TAX COMMISSION REPORT
Continuation Of Report Submitted to
Gov. Proctor.

taxation:
The New York state board of asses
sors, in its report OF 1879, said,
whether lands are assessed every |
year, or once in three years, in order I
to ascertain the correct value, 1t is |
indispensable that the lands and I'm. |
Iprovements on the land, in city, vii |
lage, and country should be assessed |
and valued separately The law
should require this of all assessors
and tax commissioners. Every man
should know what his house, store,
building of any kind is assessed at,
and at what his lot and land are as
lsessed separate from improvements
upon them. This is now the rule of
Assessment In the city OF Buffalo and
some other places in the state. II
Ought to be the sole and uniform rule.
Then would assessments be more
equal and just, and good cause for
complaints against the assessors
cease"
Another commendable feature of
this system of valuation Of real es-
tate as adopted In other states and
cities is the publicity given to the
work of the listers. Their valuations
are all open for public inspection.
We think they should be, for in spite
of the best law that can be framed,
DETERMINATIONS will be made unless
There is adequate publicity.
Such a law would, to some extent,
Iadd to the work of the listers, and al
so occasion the unqualified official
Isome embarrassment, but these OBJ
IJections are of no Importance If we
can get as satisfactory results as
those obtained in other state where
similar laws are in force.
Publicity Of Inventories.
Publicity in the work of the list.
ers should not stop with the apprai-
: sal OF real estate. We believe that
the inventory Of each individual tax
payer should be placed on file and be
open to public inspection before the
grand list is completed This would
invite attention to and scrutiny of the
/, property returned for taxation by
!, each taxpayer, as well as to the yalu-
, alton placed thereon by the lister,
and thus enable each taxpayer to
compare his own assessment with
= that of his neighbors. If each tax.
ventory was to be open to the eyes of
The public, we believe that much
property that now ecapes taxation
would be brought to light The lis
ter, too. would undoubtedly exer.
!. else greater care In his work, II he
knew that il was open to public ex-
animation and criticism. 1t is this
cloak OF secrecy that affords the dis
, honest taxpayer an opportunity to
} commit perjury with impunity, and
= there Is no good reason for 1t. The
idea that It is nobody's business what
n man pay taxes on is a mistaken one
The law affords all citizens equal pro
lection, and the expense of admins.
, tering 1t should be borne equally by
| all.
Every citizen has a right to know
5 whether or not his neighbor is bear
ing his just proportion OF this burden
EX-President Harrison, In an address
: delivered by him In Chicago in 1898,
said, we have too much treated the
matter OF a mans tax return as a
personal matter. We have put his
transaction with the state on much
!, the same level with his transactions
u with his banker, but that is not the
r true basis. Each citizen has a per-
sonal interest, pecunlary interest, in
the tax return OF his neighbor. We
Iare members OF great partnership,
and 1t Is the right of each to know
what every other member is contribut
h ing TO the partnership and what he is
taking from It.. Ii is not a private az
fair; but a public concern of the first
u 1.
this publicity dishonest valuations
q will be practically unknown, and in.
II competency, wherever it exists, will
y be exposed.
Inventories, Duties Of Taxpayers,
: Power of Listers.
n II Is not our purpose to unjustly
censure the listers. The work re-
lquired OF them Is important, and In
many instances extremely difficult.
" The time within which they are re-
- ,quired to complete their labor is 80
I'd short that in the large towns and
p cities they are necessarily forced to
do their work hurriedly, and with less
care and attention than should be
Igiven to so important matters. The
Is grand list must be completed within
~. 4
y, ground must be covered in some way
is ana the list completed within the
i'd time limited. This work could be les
~ sened very much II the individual
taxpayer would do his part,-do al
least what the law has right to ex
pect of him. Our statute requires
"a that every taxpayer, except certain
. non-residents, shall, on the first day
of April, fill out and make oath to his
10 tax inventory, and deliver the same
1 TO some one of the listers This Is
seldom done. Few persons take the
at trouble to procure the necessary
4 blank, and few ever think of filling Il
- out ready for the listers use when
le called for The lister is often ex
10 pected to act as scribe for each in
1 diyidual This practice has pre-
- vailed so long that il is doubtful If the
- taxpayer can be made to realize anC
perform the duties imposed upon hin
e without some radical change in the
system OF gathering inventories. A
change which will give the taxpayer
to understand that he really hai
he some duty to perform should be inau
N. Igurated. There Is no reason why thu
n listers, whose time is otherwise re
~ CURED in their work, should be com
TO PEELED to do the clerical work o
'rs writing up three or four thousand In
go ventories, as is now the practice II
m several of our larger towns 1t Il
suggested that our Inventories are 81
complicated that the ordinary taxpay
o er is not able to fill them out. Thi
Is not true, The ordinary taxpaye
in this state are the farmer and wag