The Lakeland evening telegram., 1913-12-23
COL. EDWARDS
EXPLAINS ORDER
Of COMMISSION
GOES INTO DETAIL REGARDING
CAUSE FOR FULL TAXATION
OF PROPERTY
Article Is in Answer to Recent Edi.
torial Appearing in the
Telegram

Telegram
Tallahassee, Fla, Dec. 81. 1913.
Editor Lakeland Telegram: In your
issue of Dec. II, i notice an editorial
(ette) referring to the recent order
OF the State tax commission in re-
gard to assessing the property in the
state at its true cash value. l was
somewhat surprised at the attitude
of the Telegram in regard to the mat
ter: First, because of your papers
usual careful and conservative posi-
tlon on public questions; second, be-
cause OF the insistent need, known Of
all men, for correction of the in
equality OF the assessment of prop
erty in the State; and last, but not
least, because of the fact, that I, a
member of the tax commission, have
the pleasure of claiming Lakeland as
my home and have for a long time
enjoyed a warm personal friendship
with you and did not believe you
would knowingly do me, or the COM
mission of which am member, an
injustice. For these reasons, am
writing this letter to you, believing
that, perhaps with some facts pre-
sented to you with which you may
not be familiar and with which the
tax commissioners are familiar, your
view OF the situation might be
changed and the readers Of the Tele-
gram in Polk county would know the
reasons for the issuance of the order
to assess property at the true cash
value.
If you will permit me l will discuss
the matter as suggested by your criti-
cism:
First, the tax commission like the
tax assessor is bound by the law.
Section l Of article 8, of the consti-
tuition of Florida says "Sec. 1.-The
Legislature shall provide for a uni
form and equal rate of taxation, and
shall prescribe such regulations as
shall secure q jast valuation of all
property both real and personal, ex-
cept such property as may be exempt
ed by law, ETC." Section of said
article says: "No tax shall be levied
except in pursuance of law" So
much for the constitution. Under
that authority, the Legislature enact
ed the following law, which is now
the law, and which every assessor in
the State of Florida made oath, when
he went into office, to carry out:
Chapter 5596, Laws of Florida, 1907,
relating to the assessment and collec-
ton of revenue: Section 12-Be-
tween the first day of January and
the first day of July in each year the
county assessor of taxes in each coun-
ty, with the aid of such assistant as
SCISSOR of taxes as may be nominated
by the county assessor of taxes and
appointed by the county commission
ers, shall ascertain by diligent in
quiry the names of all taxable per-
sons in his county and also, all of
their taxable personal property, and
all taxable real estate therein on the
first day of January of such year,
and shall make out an assessment
roll of all such taxable property"
Section 16-It is hereby made
the duty of every person owning or
having the control, management,
custody, direction supervision or
agency of property of whatsoever
character that is subject to taxation
under the laws of this State, to re-
turn same for taxation to the county
assessor of taxes in the proper coun-
ty, or to other proper officer, on or
before the first day of April of each
and every year, giving the character
anu lhC u ut NdSh NdluC vi lut Sdul6
as required by law.
Section 17-Every county asses
sor of taxes shall require any person
giving in the amount or list of his
personal property to make oath be-
fore him that the same is full and
correct, and any person refusing to
take such oath shall not be permit
ted afterwards to reduce the valua-
tion made by such county assessor
of taxes of his personal property for
that year. The valuation Of any
item of property real or personal,
by the taxayer, shall In no case pre- Z
vent the county assessor of taxes
from determining its true value, and
if he shall ascertain or have reason
to believe that the valuation OF any
item Of property is too small, he
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