The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1909-03-13
Enforce the lax Law

Enforce the Tax Law.
The assessors elected in the differ
ent cities and towns Of Vermont have
an unusual degree of responsibility
at this time in view of the develop
ments of the past few years in con
nection with the subject of taxation.
We have had the benefit OF reports
from a special commission on taxa
ton as a result of prolonged and
comprehensive investigation of the
situation in different towns, and the
burden of complaint is that assessors
have not enforced the law or carried
out the letter or spirit of tax legisla-
ton so far as their own acts are con
cerned. There are marked exceptions
to this situation as in Burlington, but
the structure applies very generally.
Ii follows as a matter of course that
listers who neglect TO comply with
the provisions of the law as to the
manner in which they shall perform
their own duties, can not be expected
to be strenuous in their insistence
that other citizens shall obey the law
in every particular Indeed assessors
who disregard the law themselves are
not in a position to exact obedience
to the requirements of the law from
others
1t is the general testimony of those
who have given thorough study to the
subject that if our present law in re-
latiOn to taxation could be carried
out to the letter, and every citizen
made to bear fair share of the bur
den of government and public i'm
proyement, there would be little
ground for criticism as regards its
results. The chief complaint is that
the law is not enforced and from this
flow most OF the ills to which the
overburdened taxpayers flesh Is heir.
We have several suggestions to
make in this connection. which We
believe will be helpful, If carried out.
In the first place all good citizens
ought to appreciate the fact that by
cooperating with the assessors they
can materially aid in carrying out the
spirit as well as the letter of our tax
legislation.
Citizens who have juggled their in.
ventories and thereby helped to create
a demand for more rigorous measures
in order to force them to bear their
share of the burden of taxation, should
take warning from the experience of
the past few years, and realize that
If they persist in tax-dodging, there
will surely be day of reckoning with
an outraged public sentiment and
their last state will be worse than
their first.
People in general have a fairly ade-
quate idea of what fair tax would
be for their neighbors, and when
wealthy man pays little more than q
poll tax for public improvements and
the expenses of government, it is nat
ural that marked unrest and dis
satisfaction with the operation of our
tax laws should result An excellent
illustration of this is to be found in
the following paragraph printed in
the editorial columns of the Barre
Times
Former Attorney General Clarke C
Fits says that three millions of tax
able property escapes taxation in
Brattleboro. We had not known be.
fore that Brattleboroeans were so
adept at the game Of tax-dodging.
This utterance brought forth the
following striking comment from the
Brattleboro Reformer:
Mr.. Fits did say that in Brattle-
boro in his opinion $9,OOO,OOO of prop
erty escaped taxation every year but
he took pains to add that the same
existed in practically every
town in the State, so that Barre-ites
are just as adept in tax-dodging as
This is a matter in which II is diff
fcult to throw stones without hit
ting some other towns glass house.
We presume the Reformer's state
ment would apply to Burlington as
well as to other towns In Vermont,
and the strange thing about this is
that most inveterate tax-dodgers are
known, although they think they hide
themselves when they hide their
money AS a matter of fact tax
dodgers would be surprised, If they
could see themselves las others see |
them"
Assessors owe It to themselves as
well as to their respective communi. |
les and the state to enforce the law
with respect to others as well as |
themselves In every case where an
oath is required, It should be faith.
'ully administered and where discre-
ion Is placed in their hands that |
should be exercised with the express
dea of better enforcement of the
aw than formerly.
If citizens cooperate with the as
SCISSORS and assessors cooperate with
zach other the next commission that |
investigates tax conditions in Vermont |
VIII have a different story to tell from
hat reported by the commission and
considered by the recent Legislature.
burlington Free Press.