Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1908-07-30

its true value In money" The average
Of the assessed valuation OF real estate
in this state probably falls below seven
~ per cent. of it's actual cash value.
The census bureau issued in 1907 re-
port under the title of wealth. Debt
and Taxatlon." in which is given a com
paratve statement OF the real and as
scssed value Of property In the different
States. For Vermont the report shows
that the assessed value of the real estate
Is but n fraction more than seventy per
cent. of It's value and It gives very wide
differences In the various counties In
the smaller of two farming counties the
assessed value IL less than nifty per cent.
Of the true value; in the larger It Is
about eighty per cent.
We find from statistics gathered by
our agents that the assessed value of
real estate In this state falls fraction
below seventy per cent. of It's actual
cash value, and this result was arrived
at before we had seen the census report.
These two estimates reached from en-
tirely different standpoints under entire
~ different circumstances corresponding
So closely, strongly support each other
They vary somewhat as to counties but
the difference in the general average is
less than one per cent.
The amounts received from state
school ard highway taxes, respectively
eight and five cents on each dollar Of
the grand list. are by such under valua-
ton greatly reduced. In one town the
amount Of state school md state high
way taxes that the state Mt large lost
by the under valuation of real estate in
1907, was sara. N town adjoining the
one last mentioned not nearly as large,
with an appraisal of its real estate at
sixty-six per cent Of It's actual value,
the state In like manner lost OF those
taxes goo
BY this under valuation the loss on
the state school and highway taxes
amounts to more than ZOO annually.
We are now only speaking OF the un-
dor appraisal Of real estate. The same
exists In regard to the appraisal of per
sonal property.
OTHER EVENTS FOUND.
The evils mentioned are not all that
the inventory statistics disclosed. In one
town at enst no Inventories could be
I found in the office of the town clerk. and
none were in existence so far as we were
| ahle to ascertain
| Our statute provides that every person
! except nonrcsidents taxable only for rea'
estate. shall procure blank inventory
on the first day Of April make full an
swers to all interroEatories. take and
subscribe the oath contained therein and
! file the same with the listers
our agents In examining the inventor
les in the entire state found 1900 or
file, and of these only 1851 were legal
| Inventories
The grand list books also contained
the names OF several thousand resident
| Taxpayers for whom there were no invcn-
tories whatever on f1le So that probably
| less than three per cent. Of the resident
taxpayers Of this state fled legal inven-
tories in 1907.
SHOULD FORFEIT sc0.nlo.ooo
Tho statute also provides that If a list
or accepts an inventory of person not
made out and sworn to as provided by
! law, neglects or refuses to appraise anC
set in the list. as required by law, eaci
item. described therein, such lister fol
each refusal or neglect shall forfeit t.
the town In which he is lister. the sun
Of two hundred dollars. IN the year 100
the forfeitures thus incurred by lister.
will amount to twenty millions OF dol
lars
The agents Of this commission who
examined the inventories were not par
ticularly instructed to report specific in
stances of illega! inventories. Some, how
ever. mad special reports Of unusua
cases and from these and tho reGula'
reports we select some examples to show
that these irregula rites were not merely
technical failures to comply with the law
but involved. in almost every town, In
competence. carelessness and negligence
and in many, favoritism, discrimination
or dishonesty on the part of the listers
| Thousands OF Inventories werc found that
had not been sworn to- and very man!
had not even been signed In severa
towns the listers guessed that the tay
payers had nothing but real estate tax
able. ard therefore required and obtained
no inventory, but simply set the rca
estate in the grand list. taking it from
the uuadrennial appraisal. In one cit!
over a thousand slips for real estate
were filed by the listers for resident tax
payers who. the ,sters assumed would
return nothing but real estate on theil
inventories and so required none, thereby
violating an essential provision of tn,
law. But this city was not alone II
failing to obtain inventories of It's tax
payers or to enforce tho penalties foi
non compliance with the law. In many
other towns inventories were not required
I'm such cases Many inventories were
found where not single question haf
been answered and where the name OF
the taxpayer had been entered In the
n inventory