The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1911-07-20
Valuation of Taxable Proper
ty of City to Pass Twenty
Million Mark this Year
HARD TASK FOR FINANC|ERS

L
field work for the annual valuation OF
the property Of the city and for the
first time in the history of the city il
is certain that the valuation will pass
the twenty million mark. The asses
sors are not yet ready to give out
figures and in fact a half dozen bic
personal assessments are still to be
made, but the total will show an in.
crease Of more than million dollars
over the valuation made in 1910. The
increase reaches to every ward in the
city and it is more general in it's char
acter than in previous years. The as
sessment of personal property of the
big manufacturing concerns will be
slightly greater than last year, the in
crease possibly reaching the 100000
mark. The real estate assessments
have been made much larger than a
year ago.
The assessors hope to have theil
figures ready to turn over to the clerk
by the first Monday in August and the
copying Of the tax roll will be started
just as soon as the figures are avail
able.
The finance committee of the com
mon council is going to have monu
mental task this year to reach the es
timated expense Of the city for next
year without making some change in
the amount Of the levy. If the as
sessed valuation is $2O,OO0,OO0 thir
| teen mill tax would give the city
100000 and this with the $4,000 the
estimated receipts from other sources
would give the city total of $4,000
In addition to this is the amount that
the city may receive from the collec
tion of the income tax. This is entire
ly an enigma to the assessors and tc
the officials of the city. The members
Of the legislature declare that vast
sums will be collected as income taxes
and all but ten per cent of the amount
collected will remain in the city and
county. The great amount will go tc
the city. The tax is to be collected
by the state and the ten per cent
withheld is to pay the cost OF col
lection.
The finance committee Of the coun.
ell is not facing deficit at the present
time, but it is pretty certain that there
will be no money in the treasury al
the end of the fiscal year. There are
going to be lot of big items to be
met by the city in the new tax levy
1t is probable that the state and
county tax for the city will reach
close to $65,OO0. The demand of the
board of education will be $4,000
The library appropriation must be
$4,000 and in addition to this the
council must provide for the meeting
of the various payments on bond is
sues making total of $4,000 more
In addition there must be large appro
priations to pay for the city's cost
Of paving streets now under contract
and with these provisions made there
will be less than $4,000 left for the
regular budget of the city. Just how
the city can be operated on such 6
budget is not as yet plain. It would
appear on the face of the returns now
available that it will be necessary tc
increase the taxes by at least two mills
to make possible the raising of fund
to provide for the city's demands
Even with this increase it would de
mand the strictest economy to meet
the city's debts during the coming
year. The report of the committee
will not go to the council till the first
Monday in December and the mem
bers of the committee will have plenty
Of time to wrestle with the problem
of increased appropriations.