The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1910-12-29
REAssEsSMENT WORK
DRAGS IN COUNTIES
Hardness of the Assessors Brings
Complaint from all Over State.

I sessment of property values for purposes
of taxation. In almost every instance
the work drags. 1t is being charged
that the assessors are nursing their jobs
out of consideration for the per diem.
In one county the assessors are alleged
to be.uslng the reassessment as the OPP
porturity to play politics. This is in
Frederick The assessors are Demo-
Gratis. :. They are charged with valuing
property for much less than its worth,
forcing the County Commissioners, who
are Republicans, to put it somewhere
near the proper figures. They are as
suming that the Republican Commits
sioners insdoing this will incur the i'll
will of thespeople and the Republicans
will suffersas a result of it.
Frederick commissioners called up
on Governor Crothers recently to COM
plain of the State'si employees. Cow
ernor Crothers is said to have offered
them no consolation other than pointing
out to them the necessity of placing the
value of property at what it ought to be
when they came to review the work of
the assessors employed to do that very
thing. This, of course, lis what the as
SCISSORS. intended the County Commits
sioners should do, so there was little
satisfaction in the suggestion made by
the.Governor.
Ac +hn 80 c+oYl~ Tow
able basis of Frederick, if allowed to
stand at the.fgures of the States as
SCISSORS, may be less than it was under
the old assessment. Frederick city is
one of,the richest of its size in the Uni
ted States, eand Frederick county is
right up at the top of the list. Hence
a depreciation in values is regarded as
ridiculous to say the least. 1t is being
claimed, however, that land worth from
$50 to $50 an acre is being put down at
much less than its real worth, with sim
liar undervaluations all along the line.
Adjoining Frederick is Washington
county, one of the few in which the re-
assessment has progressed at salts
factory rate. There the taxable basis
will be increased, it is said, from $24,-
coo, 900 toE$40, 600, 00C. z Frederick, it is
claimed, should make similar show
ing.
Not only is-the rate for county taxes
estimated from the taxable basis, but
the levy for state purposes is estimated
in the same way. Hence Baltimore
city and every county in the state are
interested inlknowing that the rate for
every other city and county is fair. ANY
other scheme.of valuation is an unjust
one. Baltimore city is especially inter
ested, for theTgreat bulk of the taxes
for Maryland are paid there. The de-
mand flor reassessment came largely
from the city, because the people there
felt that the reassessment of property
values there as as continual operation
kept them right up to the mark, while
the counties were permitted to escape
their just share of the burdens because
of the long periods that elapsed between
assessments, the last having been made
in the counties in 1900. Where the re-
valuation has lbeen honestly made the
justice of Baltimore claims has been
substantiated.
County officials are interested in
fair valuation of property, for they are
generality pressed for the necessary
money,Ei for.s governmental expenses
Either the basis or the rate must be
high. 1t is easier to get the money
when the basis is high. Moreover
high tax rate creates a bad impression
on the outside. Hence. the County
Commissioners of Frederick will, it is
believed, see to it that property values
are near the proper mark.
ThereEs no general court for the re-
view oflvalues. Hence the basis stands
county by county, as it is finally estab
lished byIlocal authority. If an injus-
tice is done it must be tolerated.
While the trouble over values applies
only to.Frederick. the complaint of de-
lays applies to almost every county.
Under the law providing for the ap-
pointment of assessors 80 days was fixed
as the:,timei for the completion of the
work, but the Governor was given
acknowledgement the iperiod if it was
found. THAT it was not sufficient As
sessors.were1named about August as
a rule. Hence the time for the work
has elapsed in every instance without
the task being.completed.
In some cases the assessors are be-
lieved to beiworking hard at their task.
In others, lit acclaimed that they are
nursing their job all they can. In one
county the assessors are alleged to have
met and decided that the thing for them
was gentleman day, and they con-
strued this to mean five hours day.
They did not wish to work on Saturday.
so they decided to extent the time to
six hours for five days in the week. On