The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram., 1915-02-20

as dog. If you find any pups young
er than three months. list them and
collect the tax when they reach three
months of age. Homeless and owner.
less dogs must be killed. The purpose
I or the law is to provide a fund from
which live stock losses can be paid.
Some of the assessors raised the
question rs to what recourse a dog
owner has IL his dog is killed He has
none unless he also lists the dog as
personal property and pays another
tax on him, members of the tax board
said. =
The assessors applauded~ when DR..
Scales of Boonville, the new member
OF the state board, said the pay of as.
SCISSORS is not commensurate with the
duties and responsibilities.
I'VE want you to be big enough and
brave enough to assess according to
your best judgment with real fairness
to every man." was the advice DIR.
Scales gave.
Mr.. Wolcott spoke of some OF the
Inequalities in assessments in the
state. discovered through the assess.
ment report blanks which have been
provided for the past two years.
County Scale Differs.
Through these reports we found
adjoining counties differing from thir-
ty to fifty per cent in assessments. "
Mr.. Wolcott said. I'm one county the
average assessment of household
goods was s19: in another it was $511.
TAX rates are increasing alarming
~ all over the state. Wayne county
is one of the few counties where the
rate has not increased at a marked
pace. The higher the rate, the more
people try to hide their property.
1--WE don't expect revolution in
assessments this year. But we expect
the beginning OF a great change. The
taxing laws are not flexible They
say, assess at the true cash value d
that is the thing to do. Do not assess
real estate at 100 cents on the dollar
and then assess merchandise at thirty
cents on the dollar and don't assess
5000 land at $50 an acre and take $1OO
land at the same figure.
II will give Mr.. Mathews list OF
the chairman of the other meetings IN
the state. These nine chairmen Will
get together and fix uniform rate OF
assessment for the state before March
l. When we get that schedule, other
matters will adjust themselves. There
is only one basis of taxation, it is the
true cash value"
.- Explains Expert sys: n.
When assessors raised question as
to the procedure when merchant
let's his stock run down at assessment
time and then stocks up afterwards,
Mr. Wolcott explained the system in
troduced in Wayne county two or
three years ago of hiring experts to
assess corporations, merchandise and
other taxables of similar nature.
Auditor Bowman spoke of the diff
ference between assessing a few years
ago and assessing now. 1t was for
merly a practice of assessors to leave
schedules along their route to be filled
out but 1t Is now necessary for the
assessors to come in personal contract
with the tax payer. he said.
"Unless you do, school boys would
be better because they can get around
quicker Mr.. Bowman said.
I'VE have special assessors here who
have been very successful. One as
SCISSOR has taken 142 corporations in
Richmond. Now he is going to take
every corporation in the county and
will receive pay for the work from
each township.
Gard System Used.
"Our card system of keeping record
of mortgage notes has made some in.
teresting disclosures. We have found
there is some fictitious indebtedness
to avoid taxation.
al believe Wayne county has had
higher assessments than other coun.