Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1913-12-23
COUNCIL CANNOT
GUST ASSESSORS
Kearny Body Learns That State
Law Supersedes Town
Act.

Despite the claim of Mayor Louis
M. Brock, of Kearny, to the contrary.
the Kearny Town Council has abso-
lutely no power to remove the Board
Of Assessors of the town. The mayor
at a recent meeting OF the council
declared the council could Dust the
board, and on his recommendation
the council passed a resolution which
provided that the assessors be sum-
moned to appear before that body
| last night to show cause why they
should not be removed.
Mayor Brock was SO positive in his
| assertion that the board could be re-
moved by the council that every
member Of the body, with the excep-
ton of Councilman James ]. Nc
Ateer, voted in favor of the passage
of his resolution. Two of the ASSESS
ors, Adolph Amann and William
Marin. were present last night. They
had never been officially notified to
present themselves, although the
Brock resolution called for the send
ing out of such notification.
Both of the assessors declared they
had read in the Evening Star of the
councils action in voting to summon
them before the body. They had re-
ceived no other notice, they declared.
Neither of the men were called be-
fore the council, which, it was under
stood, had convened for the express
purpose of giving the assessors a
hearing. The councilmen did not use
the regular chamber last night; they
sat in the office of the town clerk.
One of the assessors, when asked
today regarding the situation, de-
clared he had been informed the
council had unearthed an old town
ordinance which gave them the right
to seek the designations of the asses
sors. They failed. however. to learn
that a State law superseded the town
act. The text of the State law was
printed exclusively in the Evening
Star on December 1. when the Hud-
son County Board of Taxation sat in
the Kearny town hall to hear appeals
from taxpayers.
The law in question provides that
any complaint regarding the asses
sorS must be lodged with the county
board. which In turn must send the
matter to the State board, where the
| complaint can be disposed of. At the
| office of the county board today 1t
was stated no action along the lines
OF complaining to the State board
was contemplated at the present
time. Joseph Mclean, secretary of
the county board, said there is NO
action pending now against the Kear-
ny assessors, at least so far as our
board is concerned"
Mr.. Mclean last night appeared be-
fore the Kearny Council. He talked
on the needs and advantages of a re-
vision of the town methods of MAX
ing assessments. Instead of three
assessors at $500 year, serving part
| time. the town would do better with
one assessor. serving all the time and
properly paid, he said.
The double block" system of max
ing assessments ought to be used. as
it is in every other municipality in
| Hudson, he said, and a card index
system ought to be installed Town
Engineer Harry p. Kreiner had in
vited Mr. Mclean to address the
council and seemed to think we'll OF
his recommendations. Mr.. Mclean
has made long study of Hudson
County taxation subjects and is ar
authority on them.