Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1909-07-31
VALUATION STATE
REALTY ONE BILLION
The Increase VIII be About Three
Hundred Millions.
BOARD DOING GOOD WORK
THROUGHOUT STATE

Increases In Most instances Are Made
in Coal and Timber Lands--in Some
Counties The Increase Is AS High
AS 800 Per Cent, While In Others
The Assessments Remain Same AS
Last Year--Reasons For The In.
crease.
Charleston, w. va, July 2T.-There
is trouble in the camps Of many of
the corporations and many other land
owners Of the state over the action
of the boards of equalization and re-
view. The real estate values are be.
ing given boost and according to re-
ports coming in to the state house, the
realty valuation this year will be
about$1 ,000, 100000, an increase of
about 5000, 100000 over last year.
According to the administration as
backed by the tax commissioners
office the boards OF equalization, in
office this year for the first time, are
a great success. Heretofore their
work has been performed by the coun.
ty courts and for some reason or
other they were slow in getting realty
values up to the proper figure. The
assessors would fix the figures seem
ingly low in some counties and the
tu faf1nd IN Ia 10
The increases in most instances are
made in coal and timber lands. And
here 1t might be suggested. or rather
has been suggested that there is a
reason for the low figures heretofore.
According to reports. and the whole
state is familiar with them, in some
counties large corporations and
persons owning large areas of coal
and timber lands have been powerful
in politics and unusually took an in
terest In the election of assessors and
county commissioners. These same
corporations and individuals enjoyed
low figures on their real estate. Now
change is taking place. The boards
of equalization were appointed direct
by the state board of public works
and it was the intention Of the ad
ministration to pick men who knew
realty values and who are not afraid
to put figures at what they should
be. They are men not connected so
far as is known with any large land
owning corporations and men without
a price. Not that the members of
county courts heretofore have not
been honest men. But in many in
stances they owned their offices to
large landowners and did not zee
their way clear to shove up figures
as the administration would have
them do.
Large Increase.
Late reports from some of the coun-I
ties show large increase over last
year Most of the counties reported
so far are in the southern end of the
state though Preston and Webster are
coming TO the front. In Preston the
indications are favorable for an in
crease of some s4.O00,000. But Mingo
county is in the lead now. There the
increase will be somthing like 5000
900. There is an interesting story
connected with Mingo county Last
year Auditor Darst, then assistant tax
commissioner, went to Mingo, so the
story goes to appear beore the coun
ty court. He found the door locked
and when he finally got in he found
an order entered by which the court
had adjourned. This year Tax Com
missioner Townsend visited the coun.
ty. He had had something TO do with
the appointment of the board of
equalization and got a hearing with
the result that the increase Is large.
In Wyoming and Mcdowell counties
the increases will be large. In some
instances the increase is about 300 per
cent while in some counties the as
sessment will be practically the same
as last year. But the increase gener-
ally is going to be an item and n
accordance with the spirit of the new
tax laws.