Sequachee Valley news. (Sequachee [Sequatchie], Tenn.) 1896-1952, 1911-04-13
COUNTY ATTORNEY
Representative Rauiston Writes
Regarding Proposed Office
Nashville. Tenn. April 8, 1911.
To the Sequachee News,
SeGuachee, Tenn.

Gentlemen:
+ enclose herewith copy of bill re
Gently introduced by both myself ant
Senator Layne, to create the office Of
County Attorney for Marion County.
The principal purpose of this bill
was to provide for the election of an
officer, whose duty it would be to see
that the taxes of the county were prop
erly and equitably assessed.
Eight or ten years ago our tax rate
was something like one-half of what II
is now and we have made no great
public improvements, except the pike
roads, and we owe the principal part
of the cost of these yet. During this
period a number of large industries
have located in our county. and we
expected to get great benefits from
/ these concerns. We thought that our
Y treasury would be full of money, and
our tax rate instead of doubling would
possibly be reduced to one-half but in
this we were badly mistaken. If this
bill could pass, and a good officer were
OiCceo0s uuCDO AuASO NOhSClhO WOulu
probably be forced to pay taxes like
the poor people and the people in me-
dium circumstances are forced to pay
1t is said that no one pays on the
full cash value, and perhaps that is
substantially correct, but the farmers
and other small taxpayers are paying
on from sixty to eighty per cent, as
estimate it, while in my opinion the
most Of the corporations in the county
are paying on from ten to thirty per
cent. basis.
do not think, however, the bill
will pass, for the corporations have
had their lobbyists here for several
/ days making most desperate fight
against it and they will probably sue
ceed in defeating it, but the principles
of the bill are right, and right will
prevail in the end. This measure
only seems to equalize the taxes, and
! if these, concerns, who are so ready to
send lobbyists to Nashville to defeat
the measures introduced by the peo-
pies representatives are paying pro
rata part of the taxes, why would
they be SO ready to spend their money
to suppress measure of this charac-
teri
Before the Senate Committee, it was
said, by the representative of the cor
porations that this Office was being
created for certain man, intimating
Ahok hrothor
pleasure in denying this statement be-
fore the Committee, in the presence of
the gentlemen, whom | suppose we're
responsible for it being made. I pre-
sumo, that the man who made the
statement was only repeating false in
formation, which had been given him
by his associates, probably without
knowing whether it was true or false.
Before the bill was introduced, my
brother assured me that he would not
be candidate for the Office, and was
not in a position to accept it, and he
and l agreed together, that probably
p, H. Thaeh, of Jasper, could and
would be elected to this place.
hope You will let this letter, to-
gether with the copy Of the bill ap-
pear in this weeks issue of your paper
that your readers may know my posi-
tion and and also what is being done
to defeat their rights.
Respectfully,
s. Fl. RAULSTON,
Representative from Marion County. |
AN ACT to create the Office of County |
Attorney for Marion County, to pro-
vide for the election and compensa-
tion of said officer and to prescribe
his duties.
SEC. 1. Be it enacted by the Gen
eral Assembly of the State of Tennes-
see, That the Office of County Attorn-
ey for Marion County, is hereby Great
ed. THE said officer shall be elected
by the County Court of Marion County
at the July term, 1911, and this said
officer shall hold his office until the
first of January, 1918. at which time
the said County Court shall elect a
County Attorney for the period of two
years and bienially thereafter.
SEC. q Be it further enacted, That
it shall be the duty of the said County
Attorney to transact all the legal bus
iness of the said county, and to advise
the County Officers upon legal matters
relative to their offices.
1t shall be his further duty to in
spect all assessments of taxes made in
said county, and the records pertain
ing thereto, and ascertain whether or
not said assessments have been legally
and properly made and entered of rec
ord. In case the said Attorney finds
that any assessment of records pertain
ing thereto have not been made or
kept as the law requires, it shall be
his duty TO advise the officer or offic-
ers, whose duty it is to make such as
Continual Merit Pd0e III