Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1915-07-13

the total operating expenses and taxes
in Iowa $70,454, 160.50, leaving net IN
come, after paying operating expenses
and taxes, Of $18.496,055.10. This makes
the ratio of operating expenses anu
taxes IN Iowa, 1882 per cent.
IF you capitalize the me- earnings
of the railroads of Iowa, as above set
forth, s19,49s,0551o, at per cent, you
obtain a total valuation of $27S,515,-
072. AS matter Of fact the valuation
as fixed by the executive council Tor
the railroad property in Iowa for 1914
was s3l5.192Os0, or s36,677,00S IN ex-
cess of a fair valuation on the capitall-
cation Of net earnings.
Net Income Of 6.18 Per Cent.
Another method Of determining
whether or not the railroads Of Iowa
are assessed at their fair value Is to
take the net income of the railroads
as compared to the assessed value OF
their property. The total assessed
value of all the railroads IF Iowa, for
1914, was sS15,192.Oso. The net in
come after deducting operating ex-
penses and taxes. was S19,496,o 5o.lo.
This represents a net income of put
6.1S per cent on the value of the rail-
road property as aSed by the executive
council for the purposes of taxation.
Again. the amount of taxes paid by
all the railroads in Iowa is 1907 per
cent of their net earnings. ana tnls
without deducting taxes paid. NO pus-
mess or commercial enterprise in Iowa
could live on net income OF but o.lo
per cent on its value as fixed Tor the
purpose of taxation, and we believe
there are no business enterprises and
| no individuals in the state that pay
| 1857 per cent of their net income IN
taxes.
In presenting these suggestions as
| to equalization of net income, 1t Will be
borne in mind that the railroads DO
| not concede that, under the Iowa stat
| utes a valuation can be fixed by this
| exclusive method, but, in arriving al
| the value of railroad property, all OF
| the general items which tend to in
! crease or detract from the value OF
| that property should be considered
| lust as if the council were valuing the
| property of any other commercial en-
!; terprise.''
Rock Island Asks Reduction.
Attorney F. w. Sargent, represent
T, ing the Rock Island lines, declared be-
| fore the executive council at Its hear
| ing yesterday that the valuation OF
the Rock Island lines last year was
| too high and that the Rock Island was
taxed at S7,35 per cent of it's ascer-
tanned value, the highest of any road
in the state. He argued for reduc-
! ton in taxes.
The value which your method
I would assign to our lines for the year
! 1918. based upon 1914 earnings. is 49,
! f13 per square mile said Attorney
Sargent. "Of this amount there should
+ be deducted so per cent to equalize
our value with other classes Of prop
erty. This would leave our value at
| s26344 per mile, and the tax value at
fourth of that amount, or s6,5e1
per mile
| He gave figures on the amount OF
| taxes on each $1,000 of full valuation
paid by the Rock Island in various
states. In Iowa the total is s1o.35,
which is close to the average. Three
| states collect more than the average OF
! state taxes and seven, including Iowa
| less than the average. In general taxes
| including Iowa, collect more than the
average, while five are more
| But after all it is only question OF