The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1913-04-03
STICK TO PROGRAM
ON TAXATION LAW
Barre Assessors Are To Abide By the
Ruling of Attorney General Brown
and Subsequent Instruction
To Listers Conference.

! What the listers IN other Vermont
towns and cities are doing isn't going
TO have any influence in reshaping the
policy Of the Barre assessors inf obey
ling the letter of the opinion which At
torney General Brown has handed down
on the new tax law. In fact, with the
lapse OF day and half since inyen-
tories began to be taken, il was de-
cided at a special meeting OF the city
council yesterday afternoon that the as
SCISSORS would follow out their original
Interpretation of the offset law as it
coineided with the instructions OF the
attorney general and the subsequent in
Istructions as delivered to the conference
lof listers by the tax commissioner.
| Yesterdays special meeting was the
Ioutgrowth of request which a cont
imittee representing the Granite Manu-
lacturers association made at pre-
vious meeting of the council asking that
economy be pIacticed IN the admirs-
tration of city affairs until the grand
list had been compiled for 1918. At
that time, the discussion apropos tax
matters digressed into other channels
and there were those present who up.
held the initiative taken by outside list
Icrs in pursuing policy opposed to the
Iopnion furnished by the attorney gen
eral.
At yesterdays meeting, the mayer
members OF the city council, j. L. Wal.
lace and Augustus NJ. Rossi Of the board
of assessors, City Attorney L. l.. Scott
and Secretary Charles H. Wishart of the
Granite Manufacturers association held
conference of two hours on the tax
question. The city attorney attacked
theory which seemed to prevail in
some quarters to the effect that Barre
would be subject to an unjust proper
ton OF the state tax should uniformity
fail to be preserved throughout the state
in applying the 1913 tax statute. Re-
plying to any assertion of such a nature,
Mr.. Scott said that different methods of
fixing valuations prevailed in the state.
Under such circumstances it would be
difficult to ascertain just who would be
burdened with an unjust proportion in
paying the state tax.
The city attorney outlined the de-
Of the new tax laws, referred |
to the attorney generals opinion and |
to the conference of listers over which /
pelier At the time Of the conference |
he had not fully agreed with Commis- /
sioner Plumley on the legal opinion Of /
the attorney general, although the more /
he studied il the more he believed the
attorney general to be right The whole L
thing hinged on a technieality, he said.
In his Judgment, the legislature had in
tended the law to be satisfactory, not I
the fact that it had been 4
as money exemption law, Il
-ather than mortgage exemption stat
ite According to his belief, it would
be folly for the assessors in Barre to L
,hange their Interpretation now that a
rood many inventories had been actual
y received.
Reiterating his statements of the
tight before. Secretary Wishart thought
hat the law under either Interpretation
would work hardship on the manu-
acturer, since both recognize that mon
" and mortgage loans are only exempt
N money loaned within the state. Re /,
living to inquiries from the board MIR.
Nishart said that most of the debts ow-
ng granite manufacturers were outside
he state.
After all his only purpose in APP
roaching the council had been to seek \
reasonable reduction in administra
ion expenses until the size of the grand
st would be revealed.
Aldermen Bancroft and Keefe said =
hey had seen number of manufac
urers who had felt particularly dis
over the new tax statute. The :
ormer declared that his business called :
i'm to many stonesheds and he had yet :, a
0 find manufactures who complained.
alderman keefe had seen some who
'ere pleased with the conditions.
II seemed to be the consensus OF opin- :
IN that the offset clause in the tax law u
as responsible for the manufacturers u
ilemna, regardless of what interpreta !, !,
on might be given to the money ?
,aned" section. Action on the manu- y
.cturers' request for economy had not =
cen taken when the council adjourned =
t 3 o'clock. =;