Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1908-01-23

th9 state, and their annual cost to the
state is SOL, 200, besides the expense to
the counties.
Such an expensive piece of govern
mental machinery should only be main
tanned If results beneficial to the state
or the citizen flow from it. For my
self have been unable to discern any
advantage resulting to the state or the
people from these boards. The osten-
sible purpose for creation of these
boards was to procure the equalization
of values II this were the real rea-
son, then the two years they have
been established is long enough
time to accomplish this end, and their
further existence is unnecessary.
In any view of the case the county
boards of taxation, if they ever had a
useful purpose, have now served that
purpose and should be abolished and
return be had not only to the local as
sessment of property, but to the re-
view of assessments against the prop
erty of individuals by local boards of
appeal in cases of taxation. Provision,
A4ONC ollOulu Ut lldQG LUZ COlUC
board or body with power to equalize
by simple methods of procedure and at
small expense valuations between mu-
inequalities for the apportionment of
county taxes. Probably this can be
done through the state board of equal
ization of taxes.
In this connection and as incidental
to the discussion of the equalization of
the value of the railway and individual
property | suggest in view of the
claim frequently made that railway
property In this state is assessed above
its true value and the counter conten-
ton and belief of many that it is as
sessed below its true value, that au-
thority be given to appoint two COM
petent and eminent experts in the
valuation of such property to make an
Inventory and appraisal of all the fixed
railway property In this state for the
information of the state board of as
SCISSORS, the state board Of taxation, the
legislature and the people. Since estab-
fishing our present method of taxation
"a iuhWdy property Ii 1901 nU SuCu
valuation has been made
If the property Of the railroad COM
panies is taxed in excess of what it
should be, it is wrong and should be
righted. If it is not so taxed, the peo-
pie are entitled to know the facts.
Nothing is wanted but that which is
just and right.
Constitutional Amendments.
Various subjects of amendment of
the constitution of the state have been
before the people of the state for some
time
One is an amendment that will per-
nit Of the separation of municipal
from state and national elections.
This, in my view, is an exceedingly
popular suggestion, and there is an al
most universal demand for such separa-
ton of the municipal from the state
and national elections, and until con-
stitutional amendment can be adopted
some provision should be made by
which the tickets voted at an election
should be separate, so that the munich
pal ticket and the state or national
ticket should be voted in different
boxes.
The cost of two elections year
should be avoided If possible. 1t is
difficult now to get people to vote at
one election, and the experiment Of
having two elections in the same year,
as was the old custom, should not be
tried again. Until constitutional
amendment shall be adopted providing
for these elections in alternate years
suggest that a statute be enacted pro-
viding for two boxes and two tickets
at the fall election, separating the ma
tional and state from the municipal
and county officials to be voted for at
such election or the Massachusetts bal
lot.
Another suggested amendment to the
constitution relates to the creation of
assembly districts.
The legislature last year passed an
amendment providing for this.
In the more populous counties there
seems to be general demand in favor
of assembly districts, and upon princi-
pie it seems to me to be right.
In connection with this proposition
1t seems to me to be worthy of con-
sideration whether it would not be
wise to submit to the people of the
state at the same time an amendment
to increase the possible limit of as
semblymen, which is now fixed by the
constitution at sixty, to not exceeding
100 members.
In the same way I suggest whether
the time for submitting an amendment
to the people should not be reduced
from once in five years to once in
three years and whether the voting
upon such amendment should not be
changed so that the vote should be
had at a general election, where the
people take sufficient interest to vote,
rather than at special election, as at
present required.
Court Reorganization.