Weekly independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 1887-1914, 1914-06-05
THE STATE TAX COMMISSION

! Standard had the following to say
regarding thu aims and purposes
of the state tax commission:
The sole business of the tax
commission is the securing of
equalization inE assessments. ItShps
nothing to do with the expenses Of
state and county government The
legislature contracts all the bills
which must be met by the taxpay-
ers and sets the state tax rate
which determines the amount of
revenue collected by the state on
the aggregate assessment of all
property within its confines.
1.-The legislature at its last ses-
sion appropriated in round mum
bers 81 .35O.000 and set the state
rate at 66 cents for 1913 and 80
cents for 1914, two CENTS of the last
amount not being applicable to the
ordinary running expenses of TIE
state government. In order to
meet its obligations and to take
care of a floating Indebtedness of
about 100000 which was created
prior to the creation of the tax
commission, it was necessary to in
crease the assessment in 1918 to
Sll3, 100000 and in 1914 to APP
proximately 900. 900, the larg-
er amount returning practically the
same sum Of money to the state
treasury as that returned by the
smaller assessment.
"The commission has just COM
plrtcd the valuation for assessment
of the railroads and public utility
corporations and increased the as
scssment of this class of property
in round numbers seven million
dollars over the figures at which
il was assessed in 1918. all of this
class of property being rated at a
full GO per cent Of its cash value.
"The assessment of the mining
industry, including it's net procee DIS.
was made in 1913 on a 60 per cent
basis, and in 1914 upon an 80 per
cent basis. the differential being
considered equitable in view of the
fact that our constitution AMI sta
tutes provide for a classified as
scSsment upon mines. As a result
of the 1918 assessment the tax
commission adjusted the bullion
tax with the larger Mining conf
panics, after the full returns had
been made to the county assessors.
and collected between $4,000 and
$75.0 in additional taxs from the
larger mining interests, three com.
panies in southern Nevada paying
amounts of $4,000, $4,000 and
$4,000 respectively. with many
minor increases from smaller con-
Germs. The mining tax in Churchill
county was practically doubled in
1918 as result of our activities.
In the past ii has been the practice
for certain mining companies to
maintain separate and distinct corr
p0raiions which operated the mill.
ing plant a1juncts of producing
mines and these milling companies
charged an arbitrary milling cost
against the production of the
mines, thus defeating the bullion
tax purpose.
As far as taxation is concerned
every one Of the milling corpora
tions has been eliminated and the
actual net proceeds are returned
for assessment purposes. The esii-
mated increase in the mining is.
sessmcnt of 1914 compared to that
Of last year will he about $1,000
900.
much has been said regarding
the assessment OF livestock, the
commission having provided rule
for the year 1914, which appears
favorable to this class of property.
II should be borne in mind. how
ever. that in 1912, prior to the
creation of the tax commission,
less than 40 per cent Of the live
stock Of the states was assessed
The increase in the assessment Of
this class Of property effected by
tho commission in 1914 will he al
most one hundred per cent or about
100000
"In addition to the work Of
classifying lands and cqualizing