Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1912-07-29
State Tax Commission Records Show Tax Ad-,
miniStrdtOn of ChehaIiS County to Have
Favored Certain Classes of Property
THE ASSESSMENTS HAVE BEEN FARCIAL
Comparison of Township I6-6 Reveals General
Condition --- Nearly a Million Dollars
Escapes Taxation in Two townships

Nhdt does the county gain by this
low valuation? Ii this Board is able
to find out what the proportion OF
assessed to actual value really Is, un-
der our system of equalization, SO
far as the payment of state tax il
concerned, il makes not a particle Of
difference. If the merchant. the home
owner. the mechanic and the farmer,
desire to assist the mills and timber
interest in the payment Of their taxes
this Board thinks they have per-
feet right to do so, but they should
not expect aid along this line from
other counties. and we will use our
best endeavors to protect the other
counties against such condition.
This low and unequal valuation Of
the property of your county works
against the sufferers in more than
one way. For instance. il not only
Increases the taxes on certain classes
OF property in the county. but il de-
prives the county by actual calcula-
ton of over $4,000 in taxes every
year that they would receive from the
public service properties. The law
requires this Board. in fixing the val
ue OF the railroads, to value them at
the same proportion OF their value as
has been taken by the assessor for
the general mass of property of the
county. The average ratio of valua-
ton for the state is 1898, the ratio
for Chehalis County for the year 1911
is 2b.l1. which reduces the value Of
the railroads and telegraph lines
from $3.O51, ,733 to $1,997,593. a loss
on the present rate of levy of $780,
2,2, N actual money"
Who Got IL? =
There is a plain statement of cOndi-
tlOnS found after careful inyestiea-
ton, and We suggest to the moderate
taxpayer that he examine his tax re-
ceipt for 1910 and see Ii he escaped
with an assessed valuation of 1871
per cent of the actual value of his
holdings. Last year the board found
the Chehalis county assessed valua-
tiOns averaged 26.17 per cent OF &C
tual value. To arrive at this average,
large proportion of the property
must have been assessed at from one
to ten per cent, as the small owner
usually paid taxes on q valuation OF
from 40 to Is per cent of what he
could sell his holdings for.
Based on this average valuation.
the state levy for Chehalis county
for 1911, was 1888. while In 50 coun-
ties in the state the levy ranged frOn
2.O3 to 2.22. The adjoining coun-
ties Of Lewis. Thurston and Mason
received levies Of oil, 2.l2 and 3i3
respectively, showing c0nclusively
that something was radically wrong
with the taxation authorities Of Che
halls county. t4 4e
No class Of property In the county
has so greatly enhanced in value in
the past IL years as timber. yet every
effort to secure an equitable assess
ment of those lands has resulted In
failure. until the taxpayers cast aside
party politics two years ago In the
selection of a county commissioner
pledged to have those lands cruised.
Now that the cruise has been made,
the enOrmity of the tax lodging
stands revealed
Another Sample Case.
In all townships so far compared
for this paper, we find that where
the lands are held by the Weyerhaeu-
ser Timber company. the assessed
value for 1912 over that Of 1901
is most noticeable. In the Herald
OF July %. II was shown that the
cruise added 1864, 900 to the valuation
of Township. 21.7. Turning to Town
ship 1876. we find that with the ex-
ception of Sections 2. Is, 80, - and
SO, the township Ii owned by the
company: that II con
tains one billion. two hundred and
ninety-two million feet OF timber, ac-
cTding to the county cruise. and
that 1t was assessed in 1911 at S42t.-
939. This year. based upon the cruise
the assessed value is $975,43O, an in
crease of $550.491 in a single town
ship, or an increase-or rather a dis
lodged taxes on a vaIua-
ton of S914.491 in two townships
Think it over and you will, perhaps,
catch glimmering of how the tax
commission came to find such a low
average In Chehalis county.
When the Northern Pacific Rail
way Co. sold those lands to the Wey-
erhaeuser company. the former had
reports on every piece of
1t. and, the Herald is reliably inform
ed, those reports have been in the
office Of the assessor for a number
of years. If this be the fact, ignor-
ance of those values cannot be plead
ed in that office, nor by the boards
Of equalization. The question seek
ing an answer is, who's to blameo
Telephone communication was Oh
ened between Aberdeen and Bay City,
Saturday, and the local line to West