Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1912-12-27

scr No. 1: Domestic animals, house
hold furniture and farm Implements
at so per cent; town lots and farm
lands at Is per cent. Assessor No.
2: Domestic animals, household fur
niture and farm implements at so
per cent; town lots and farm lands
at 10 per cent, and structures and
improvements at % per cent. Asses
sor No. s: Appraised everything at
he returned at 20 per cent, and struc-
lures a.1f improvements at so per
cent"
The commission is clothed with am
pie authority to administer the TAX
laws Of the state, but it is the con-
~tention Of it's present members that
they CanI0t secure a just distribution
OF the tax burden without continuing
downward the GENERALIZATION of au.
thority to the county. They recon.
mend that the legislature abolish the
township assessor system and substi.
tute for it the county assessor sys-
tenn. m tile larger counties this Off.
cjal 10 become one OF the regular
county officers, but in the smaller
counties, where the salary would be
IA burden, one of the regular county
officers would be ex-officio county as.
SCISSOR and receive extra compensa.
'ticn. On the county assessor would
be placed the responsibility of the as.
sessnent of his county. He should
be appointed by the board of county
commissioners and should be remOv-
able by them or the tax commission.
He, together with the necessary as
s%istants. would make the regular as
sessment of the county. The assist
ants would be appointed by the coun-
ty assessor and confirmed by the
county commissioners and to be re-
moved by either the county assessor,
the board of county commissioners
Q" the tax commission. The removal
OF either the county assessor or an
J assistant by the board of county COM
missioners would be renewable by
the tax commission.
Once each year the county asses
sors would assemble at Bismarck and
IT. conference with the state tax COM
mission review their work and re-
ceive their instructions. This confer
'ence might last a number Of days and
be turned into . training school. The
tax commission can keep in close
touch with one-half a hundred asses.
sors, but would find it utterly inpos-
sible to do SO with fifteen hundred,
over whom they have little, If any,
authority.
1t has been urged that the county
assessor system would be more lex
Eensive than the township system. AS
the county assessor system has been
adopted by nearly one.half of the
states in the Union the commission
investigated the cost in those states
which have recently changed from
one system to the other. Their con-
clusion is that it is less expensive
than the township system and much
more effective. Every state having
the county assessor system to which
inquiries were addressed reported it
both economic and effective. The
general experience is that the amount
Of new property found and listed
more than pays for all the expenses
OF assessment.
The commission concludes it's dis
,crssion Of this subject: "This COM
mission is firmly of the opinion that
without the county assessor its work
will be greatly handicapped. To Sc,
cure uniformity of appraisement ana
the listing of all taxable property
within the state through fifteen hun.
dred elective township officers is a
physical impossibility. The very tnul.
tiplicity of correspondence, the utter
ilnpracticabiiity Of conventions or
conferences will be admitted by any
one familiar with administrative func.
tions. If any considerable amount OF
taxable property OF the state which Is
now escaping taxation is to be list
ed and the appraisenent OF all tax
able property made to even approx.
mate uniformity, the GENERALIZATION OF
authority must be continued down:
J ward to the secondary taxing district
by the adoption of the county asses;
sor system. That this is trne is indi
Gated by an address delivered at the