The Idaho Springs siftings-news., 1913-05-17
1 sA Axpay erS

Com - ssion
iii 5 ss IN ttnz AK ie.Ies, which
X - ii o. The :, neleeatn General
.-seno,s, nave nes greatly misrepre-
ut 81 ia Ger an quarter) the Tax
,nmis - desire, 4, make the follow
z statement:
lh.. Hmitlna tax levies, was
.pat I o. "a cor n.ttee If county
sess aud tne lax Commission.
he 'a~ , ,, signe,. ~ aid IN bringing
zuut.l -.r 4.ss ss... 1T Of property at
iult * - "a IL - 10 protect the
tiHpayt' . piac.- limit on the
mount oi tax that ( may be called
1t ~ pa, 70 secure his for 1913
.uer i mix Of III teen percent IN
lass .ter lne ks levi d IN 1917
'as eeea tsiaced on Ak levying bodies
I'M syec ic nHt5- on the levy Tor
unt! Current ex.s : , including the
s,utlngent aad poy.r FUNDS. A table
Has bee. repar.o iix.ng the haaximum
e'Ies ior tnese purp tses according 10
..iualion. he maximum levies SO pro-
.dea in tn bill nae- been determined
trDm d stud, of teyses now made for
toe above purposes oy each county and
~ en- valu 5 are rsa, ID to full cash ac-
cordlng to i4s, lhes. levies will yield
an abundance of money for the pur-
poses of od1ty ( gby-rn nent.
he act az, o-I! IL, that the statl
tory rates of levy for the state edu-
cational institutions and other state
purposes snail be reduced for the year
iAl3 the amonnt OF tax mat may be
levied thereby shall not exceed the
amount levied in 1872, plus fifteen per
cent. For each year after 1913 the
levy is limited so as not to permit more
more than five percent increase over
the preced ny year. The same limit
h also placed on all tax-levying bodies
ia the state from the general assembl,
to the school district. Therefore, by
th,se provisions, neither the state tax,
nor the city county, town or school tax
can increase more than fifteen percent
in 1913 nor more than five percent for
eacn year thereafter The taxpayer
is accordingly protected
The act also provides that any taxing
district, except the state, may
be granted five-mil increase
III the levy by the tax COM
mission when 1t is shown that all pr p
erty therein Is assessed at full cash
value and that this assessment does not
amount to :. valuation large enough 10
permit levy adequate for the proper
support Of the local governme IT. This
provision is inserted to prevent possible
hardship The law does not apply to
money needed to pay bonded indeb' ed
ness warrants already issued and out
standing, or interest on special assess
ments for local improvements.
Under full va iue assessment the
state levy will be reduced from
lis to not to exceed 1-2 mills,
which in the matter of state tax
will place Colorado among the very
IO"cSt III lie hdtioii luSlS Will oS q
slight indncement for countle to cut
and slash our state tax, and as mat
ter of law as well as good business
sense, every county should see that all
of the taxable wealth of the county is
placed on the roll at full value and the
levies made as low as possible. Full
cash values and low lenies are funda-
mentally right in principle as well as re
CURED by law. Any person of intelli.
gence at once reconizes the advantage
of full value and one per cent taxes
over one third value and three percent
taxes
Heretofore assessors, county COM
missioners, the tax commission and the
state board of equalization have all
grossly violated the law and their oaths
of office in assessing at less than full
value, From now on all officials will be
required to obey the law. We ask the
support of all the fair minded and pub
lie spirited citizens in the effort to get
the entire taxable wealth Of the state
on the asse ssment rolls in order that
taxation may be equiiably distributed.
Very truly yours
The Colorado Tax Commission