Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1914-05-26
THE RESPONSIBILITY.

THE RESPONSIBILITY.
Senator Chase is magnifying the
importance of the maximum fixed by
the legislature out of all proper
ton. He is distracting attention
from the officers who actually levy
the taxes, when they are the very
men towards whom attention ought
to be directed. The legislature can
not fix maximum levies in such a
way as to make up for want of in
part of the tax-levying bodies.
Judge Lee has offered the only
criticism in this connection of any
merit, and that is that the new as
sessment has increased the amounts
to be realized from the fixed levies
of the legislature, the fraction of a
mill taxes for the state institutions,
capitol extension, and the like. But
even in this Judge Lees conclusion
is wrong, for making a fair adjust
ment of assessable values is the leg
al duty of the executive council,
while making fixed levies is not a
legal obligation on the part of the
legislature. 1t is the fixed levies,
and not the assessment that work
the injustice.-Register and Leader.
The Importance of the maximum
levies fixed by the legislature could
hardly be magnifed. The legislature
must determine approximately what
is needed for certain purposes and
then it places restrictions according
ly. In arriving at its conclusions it
must Of necessity take notice of val
uations and it has right to pre-
sumo that the basis of values will
not be materially altered in a single
year. It may Of course presume
that values will be slightly increas-
ed from time to time. It is true
that the legislature cannot fix max
imum levies in such a way as to
make up for want of intelligence or
want of care on the part of the tax
levying bodies Neither can the
legislature foresee the usurpation of
authority by the executive council
by which that body practically takes
from the hands OF the assessor and
other taxing bodies the real duty of
fixing values, thus saying just how
much money may be taken from tax
payers for certain purpose. The
Legislature provides for the levy of
a one mill tax for a specific purpose.
Members have taken pains to ascer-
tain just how much money is need
ed. They must make calculations
upon the basis OF values at the time
such legislation is enacted. Then the
executive council, sitting as a board
of review, increases farm values for
ty per cent, thus requiring farm
lands to pay forty per cent more for
that specific purpose than the legis-
lature intended. City property is
boosted ten per cent by the council.
The operation is easy, but the tax
payers of Webster City and every
other town in the state must pay ten
per cent more for that particular i'm
provement, as well as for other pur-
poses for which the legislature pro-
vided, than the legislature intended.
Here is the injustice resulting from
the unwarranted and unnecessary
increase in valuations made by the
executive council.
It is admitted that it is the legal
duty of the council to make fair
adjustment of assessable values"
But the executive council made no
pretense of adjusting" 1t rode
rough shod over the judgment Of as
SCISSORS, boards Of supervisors and
city councils and boosted values all
along the line. In the cities the in
crease was ten per cent; of the nine
ty-nine counties in the state, three
were reduced and ninety-six were
increased and one was left where
the assessors and boards had put it.
That is not an adjustment. If it is
to be conceded that the executive