American Falls press. [volume] (American Falls, Idaho) 1907-1937, 1911-08-24
LAYING TROUBLE
With ASSESSORS
tate Board Facing Very Diff.
fcult Problem.
ash Value Plan as Worked Out By
Assessors Leaves the State Board
With Too Limited Powers to
Make Just Equalization.

The state board of equalization
working on problem that is
0mplex enough to satisfy the de-
Tres of the most inveterate puzzle
olver. 1t is up against the PROPOSE
10n of harmonizing and equalizing
ne assessments that sprang from
ne inauguration of the governors
cash valuation order, and If the
equallzat1on Is confined to statutory
imitations. the people of some of
the counties will have cause to re-
member 1911 with anything but
Kindly feelings. The cash value plan
Enas worked to rob the state board
Of large measure of it's power to
equallze. 1t can lower any county l 3
per cent, or raise any county to the
same extent. This gives the board
range of 30 per cent in which to
make equalizations. Under the old
Order, when assessments were made
on basis of about one third value.
they virtually had 80 per cent in
which to make adjustments. The
assessments of Shoshone and Bing-
ham counties will illustrate this. In
1910 land in Shoshone county was
assessed at S6.74 per acre, and in
Bingham county at $3.50 The state
board could increase the Shoshone
valuation 10 per cent, making it
VISA per acre; it had power to re-
duce Bingham's valuation also Is
per cent, which would have brought
| it to S7.49. or 15 cents lower than
Shoshone.
Under tthe Interpretation the as
SCISSORS of the two counties put on
the cash valuation order, lands in
Shoshone county are assessed at or
near $40 per acre, while those of
Bingham county are placed at about
$40 per acre. If the state board in
creases Shoshone the maximum of
% per cent her lands will be raised
to S11.50 per acre. And if the board
exercise its full authority to lower
the assessment of Bingham to the
full extent of its power, Is per cent
her lands will still be valued for
taxation purposes at S34 per acre,
almost three times that of Shoshone
In effect, the cash value plan has
not only rested in increasing the in
'sqality of assessments, but has rob-
bed the state board of two-thirds of
its constitutional power to make ad-
justments.
The percentage of increase in val
uations made by the assessors of
eAC FdlIOuS COuuiltS ranges from %
for ShOshone to 442 for Bingham
Four counties show less than 115
percent increase, four more less than
zoo per cent, three less than 250 per
cent, seven others less than 800 per
cent, three others between 500 and
35e per cent, and only one, Bing-
ndm county, more than 400 per cent. |
AS result of these inequalities |
the assessors of the various high !
counties, backed up by prominent /
citizens, have been appealing to the .
board to make horizontal reductions +
In their assessments, while the coun-
ties that have made small inoreas-
es have contended that they were
assessed at full cash value. Unless
the board oversteps its legal au-
thority it is difficult to see how re-
lief can be afforded, and tthe peo-
plA of conties whose assessors were f
oFer-enthusiastic will have to sffer
In comparison with other counties.
The following table, giving the
acreage in each county in 1910 and
1911, together with the valuations
OF patented lands for the two years
and the increase in the valuation
Of 1911 over 1910, tells its own
story. The average increase is 234 4
per cent.
All who have appeared before the
BOARD in the investigation profess
no hostility to the principle of cash
valation provided a fair basis can be
secured. but it is plain that the dif-
flclty in eqalizing as result of the
iessening of the powers of the state
board is a factor which many of
those appearing had not taken into
consideration.