The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1909-03-18
City Treasurer Steinmetz Made
Annual Settlement With County
Treasurer Monday Afternoon
Treasurer Ordered to Get Busy and
Collect the Personal Taxes Out
standing with Aid Of Con-
stables if Necessary

City Treasurer Martin Steinmetz
| made his final settlement with County
| Treasurer Frank Marx on Monday af-
ternoon and there remains uncollected
of the tax roll, amounting to approx
mately $4,000, just $5,016.74
This is about a thousand dol
lars more than remained unpaid year
ago, but the total amount of real
estate tax remaining unpaid is a thous-
and dollars less than it was in the pre-
ceding year. The report of the treas
urer shows this year that Tue real es-
tate tax remaining unpaid is $4,561. SO,
but of this amount more than $4,000
was assessed as payments for special
improvements made in the city and the
property owners have refused to pay
the amounts, declaring that they would
test in the courts of the county the
right of the city to levy such taxes.
One property owner alone owes more
than $1,000 for special assessments
which he has protested. The treasurer
has no option but to return these taxes
as unpaid and under the law the county
treasurer must sell the property COW
cred by them to pay the taxes. The
collection of the special assessments
falls under the same law as the collec-
ton of any other class of taxes. Last
year the amount returned as unpaid
properly chargable to the special as
sessment account amounted to only a
few dollars and this was all paid later
to the county treasurer, there being no
protest against it. This year many
people in the western part of the city
have protested against paving work
that has been done and insisting that
it was not done according to contract
they have refused to pay the tax as
sessed. The next step will be for
these people to enjoin the county
treasurer from selling their property
for the collection of the tax and that
movement will bring the case into the
courts for settlement
The total amount of personal tax re-
naming uncollected this year is $455.05
and at the meeting of the Common
Council on Monday evening the city
treasurer was directed to take strenu-
Gus measures at once to collect this
tax. Under the laws of the state the
property of the delinquents can be
taken for the tax and constables will
get busy at once. The personal tax
assessed this year was much larger
than ever assessed in the history of the
city before and for this reason the
amount remaining unpaid is about 5000
greater than the amount which remain
ed at the end of the tax paying time
a year ago. An examination of the
tax roll shows that nearly all of this
tax should be collectable. In some
cases men prominent in business and
social circles have refused to pay per-
sonal taxes and it should be an easy
matter for the proper. authorities to
force the payment of these amounts
County Treasurer Steinmetz has hand
led as much money this year as in any
proceeding year, notwithstanding the
tax levied was but one per cent. The
closing Of the books will result in the
various funds of the city being re-
plenished, but already the expenses of
the city have been so great that little
money will be left in some Of the funds.