Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1915-01-07

reduced by about thirty-eight and one
half per cent each, in order to bring
the total within the levy that car lie
gally be made. It is apparent to ev
eryone that if the legislature shall
make and continue to make mill lev
les for specific purposes and continue
the present mill levies as they now
stand on our statutes and thereby
cut down the levy that can be made
for the general fund, and shall con
tinue the present standing a%ppropria
tons and make further appropriations
from the general fund, the fund thai
must maintain and support the state
government, that it will be impossible
for any administration to meet the
demands made upon the state treas
ury, unless the assessed valuation OF
the property of the state shall be
very materially increased.
The State Board of Equalization
hesitated to raise the assessed valua'
ton of the property Of North Dako'
ia, for the reason that had they done
so, it would have increased the sal
aries of the county officers in a ma.
jority of the counties of the state,
the county officers salaries being
based upon the assessed valuation OF
the property in the counties, and 1t
would also have raised the debt limit
Of cities, towns and school districts
to a dangerous degree. So, after CIV
ing the matter serious consideration,
it was thought best to hold the valu-
alton about where it was and then
call the attention of the legislature
to the problem and ask the legisla-
ture to make such provision with ref
erence to the county officers salaries
as in their judgment they thought
wise, and also to give consideration
to the debt limits of the cities, towns
and school districts.
We must remember that in order
to raise the amount of money neces-
sary to pay all Of the standing ap-
preparations and appropriations that
would come under the mill levies as
made by past legislatures, that the
valuation of the property of the state
would have to be increased probably
fifty per cent. Personally, l do not
believe that this should be done. II
there ever vas a time when we should
retrench, economic and conduct the
of the state with wise econ
omy, it is now, for our people are In
no condition to stand such a heavy
burden as this would i'm
pose upon them. The mill levies
should be revised and should either
be wiped out entirely and appropria-
tons made in specific amounts from
the general fund, thus permitting the
state to levy the whole four mills for
the general fund, or else the mill lev
les should all come in under a one
mill levy, leaving three mills for the
general fund of the state. There is
natural increase in the assessed
valuation Of property from year to
year. There has been between the
years 1918 and 1914. The states as
sessed valuation in 1913 was about
BOZ millions and in 1914 about 3l3
millions, giving an increase of about
six millions of dollars. This increase
is accounted for by the proving up of
about $4,000 acres of government
land, which was proved up between
the years 1913 and 1914 and which
has been added to the tax rolls by
The assessors for the first time in
L914; also some school lands in Cass
and Tra!b counties were sold in De-
cember, 1918, and went on the tax
rolls for the first time in 1914; also
by the addition of several hundred
thousand dollars in assessment OF rail-
road property upon new lines OF rail-
'oad built and ironed during the past
year, and the balance is accounted for
by new buildings, houses, business
blocks and property Of that kind in
he cities of our state.
AS have already shown, at the be.
Of the present administration
The state owed over and above Its
assets the sum of approximately three
thousand dollars, which has
lad to be taken care of during the
past biennial period. Then in the
past six months the general fund is
short, as will be shown, one hun
lred thousand dollars by non.payment
the oil inspection fees. Further
n 1913 the general levy was reduced
L2k-1OO Of a mill, which was given
o the Higher Educational Institutions
md this amount in dollars was about
t38, 600. 90. Add these three short
age items together and We find a to.
al of $4SS, 10000. If we had this in
he general fund it would pay all the
bills and there would be a large
credit balance remaining.
We have lost, or at least they have
not been paid from July first, 1914,
Up to the present time, and the mat
:er is now pending in the courts, the
oil inspection fees. No fees have
oeen paid by the oil companies oper.
ating in North Dakota since the first
If last July. The oil has been m
and the expense to the state
las gone on, but no fees have come
n, pending a decision in our Supreme
Court. These fees amount at this
to approximately $%100,OO0.O0,
which the general fund should have
md would have, had the fees been
,aid. Should the court hold that the
aw providing for the inspection OF
oil is unconstitutional and that the
oil inspection law cannot be made a
revenue law for the state, then it will
the state of about $120,O00.O0
act a year, which the state had been
receiving prior to July l, 1914, over
md above the expense or cost of the
Inspection, and it would require for
" nillionc Of accocsod valuation Of