Middletown transcript., 1915-01-30
THE ASSESSMENT QUESTION

AAAA ASO6AsONAAAsA QOEoAAVIN
LIVERY EVENING was the only one
of the Wilmington dailies to COM
ment on what we had to say about the
need for a new assessment system in
this state and county. While it ap-
proved of the rather vague plan we had
suggested, it found fault with the pro-
position that so far as the city of Will
mington was concerned, the whole
question of assessment and collection
Of taxes could be settled by making
business like arrangement between the
county and municipality, whereby the
latter through it's present or some
other system should assess and collect
the county taxes on a commission
basis. The objection of Every Evening
is based on the idea that ''real estste
in the city is, and has always been,
assessed higher for city purposes than
for county purposes, and unless this
were taken into consideration the
people of the city would pay more taxes
than they have been doing in the past
to the county," When it is considered
that assessment in the city, thus ad-
mittedly made on a considerably lower
basis, than it should be, has been made
by men elected as county assessors,
paid large salary for their work, and
by the county, taking the same oath of
Office that other county assessors take,
having the law given and explained to
them, and that law reading "all
property, real and personal, subject to
assessment, shall be assessed at its
true value in money!" it would seem
that there must have been in the past a
lot of public officials, and at present at
least five such officers, liable to the
penalties laid down in the Revised Code
of the State of, Delaware at 1l33, Sec
ton Sc of Chapter A. The penal part
of this section reads. eff any assessor
shall knowingly and wilfully assess any
property upon any other principle than
its actual value, he shall be deemed
guilty of misdemeanor, and shall be
fined in any sum not exceeding one
hundred dollars" We have been in
formed that bill has been introduced
into the General Assembly providing
for a more modern system of assess
ment, and is to be followed by one
changing the method of collecting
taxes, both such bills being admittedly
framed after the laws of Maryland,
particularly those laws affecting our
neighboring counties Cecil and Kent.
1t has been evident to observers of con-
ditions in those counties, that their laws
bring about an equitable assessment
and close and prompt collection of taxes
without working a hardship on anyone
whether he lives on a farm or in a town
or city. Whether this change should
be made at once, or whether the Legis-
lature should provide for a commission
to frame such law and have it ready
for the next Legislature to act upon,
we are not yet ready to express our
opinion. On the one hand, almost any
change would be an improvement and
no change can be made until the 1917
assessment is made, and if we have to
wait till the next Legislature acts il
would be at least two years after that
before the law would be effective. On
the other hand, there is the danger oi
passing new law with such short notice
even though it may have worked we'll in
other places, and may be closely COPIED
from the laws there in force. 1t is
true that some defect will be discovered
in all laws no matter how skilfull the
lawyer that draws them, and no matter
how careful they may be considered by
the legislative body that enact them,
and it is only IN the actual use of the
law that its strong and weak points are
, brought out.
CHILD LABOR LAW