The Madisonian. (Richmond, Ky.) 1913-1914, 1914-06-09

The Board of Equalization ha:
completed its work and filed it:
report. The total assessed value
of land, town lots and persona
property is given as follows towit
Lands 1854, 511 1895
Town Lots ----- 299, 306,656
Personally 119,697,138
Dog Tax 1O3,4O0
Exemptions S0,750,649
The annual farce has agair
been enacted. The assessor:
have assessed, and the State
Board has raised the assessment
by the assessor to the extent Of
S18,42S,215. Whenever an emer
gency exists, ingenuity is equal
to the occasion. In this instance
having failed to get the Legisla
ture to pass a tax bill increasing
the levy, the State was thrown
upon its ingenuity, and rose to
the dignity of the occasion and
raised the assessment of property
to the tune of over Eighteen
Million Dollars.
Noticing the above figures, we
find that all of the personal prop.
erty Of the State of Kentucky is
listed at the low figure of $119,-
697,138. From this take the ex-
emptions, S8O,758,649, and you
have a balance left of $3S,938, 489,
representing all forms of person
al property, notes, accounts,
bonds and everything of a taxa
bic nature, except lands and
town lots. The total valuation
of the State for taxable purposes
is S864,273,833. This statement
shows that all personal property
of whatever kind or description
it may be, represents about A
per cent of the total taxable prop
erty. Thus it will be seen that
personal property is practically
escaping taxation, and that the
burden of the government is
thrown bodily on the shoulders
of the land owner.
The question of taxation is a
very difficult one, and there has
been a great agitation recently,
the object of which is to relieve
personal property of any part of
the tax. The Legislature how
ever refused to stand for it and
the scheme failed. Although
the people by a very small per-
cent representing a hopeless mi
nority of the state, actually voted
for a constitutional amendment
which would permit the Legisla-
ture to exempt personal property
from taxation, fortunately for the
land owners an error of the Sec
rotary of State defeated the
constitutional amendment and
left the constitution intact. By
this constitution all forms OF
property are required to bean
their just proportion of tax.
But what means the constitu
ton between friends? One O.
the most fragrant outrages of the
taxing system is the practical -ex
emption from taxation of person
al property. 1t must be borne il
mind that the visible persona
property such as horses, mule!
and cattle are taxed and they rep
resent practically all of the Thir
ty-eight Million Dollars given il
to the assessor for taxation. Thi
allows money, bonds, notes, etc
to escape taxation altogether.
We agree very heartily in tn
general proposition that Their
must be a change in reference t
the matter of taxes, so far as
relates to personal property, bu
that change should be brough
about by a rigid investigation b
the grand juries of the differen
counties with true bills returne
against all men who falsely sWea
to their list and falsely represer
that they have no money, bond
or notes for taxation. A fel
wholesome prosecutions followe
by convictions and a sentence i
the penitentiary will do more t
reform the taxing system of til
State than all the laws and col
stitutions that can be written
the next century.
We need no new laws in ord'
to deal with this class of ta