Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1916-04-03
in SHADOW OF
THE CUSTER LAW
County and City Treasures
Must Enforce Collec-
tions
S659,793 "a ARE DUE
DELINQUENT Officials Will Be Separate
ed from their Jobs and Bondsmen
Made to- Pay e..
se59, "a ARE DUE

Richmond, :psil 3.-Treasurers IN
the counties and cities of Virginia
will under the new law have to collect
all omitted taxes reported for prev
ious years at once.
The State Auditors report shows
that for the years prior to 1919 lhere
is due to the State back taxes. or
omitted taxes, to the amount OF s6o9,-
1884.
Failure on the part of the treas
urers to collect-either by distress,
levy, garnishee, rent of property Or
sale of timber--wiIl result in such de-
linuuent officers being subjected to the
new "ouster' law. That measure ap-
niles to them and to all other officers
who fail to do their full duty.
1t is expected that in many cases
the treasurers will be compelled to
resort to court proceedings to make
the collections. and they have no op--
ton but to enforce the law.
Auditor Moore, in Il letter to the
treasurers, calls attention to the fact
that failure to collect the taxes that
have been put into their hands makes
them liable to the State on their
bonds rs officers.
The gross amount referred to as
due the State for years prior to l9l9
does not include the sum of Sl9O.Sf5.-
81, claimed from the Marie Marshall
estate in williamsburg. That is omit.
ted from the list given by Auditor
Moore, for the reason that the mat
ter is in litigation in the Federal
courts. The committee Of Miss Mar
shall is resisting the payments on
the ground that she is not resident
of the State of Virginia. He also re-
sisted the payments in New York on
the ground that Miss Marshall was
resident of the State Of Virginia.
In Il letter sent to Auditor Moore
on March /, 1916. n. w. "yant, eX-
aminer for the Twenty fth Circuit,
says: 81 reported S1.lSO.O0O of omit
ted assessments for the years prior
to 1915 to the local board Of review
of Page county, and the board refus-
ed to act on the report, and as re-
suit of their action in refusing to
pass on my report the assessments
are not on the property books
Other local boards Of review have
done the same thing-held up the re
ports of the examiners of record.
thereby preventing the listing Of the
property for taxation. Just how many
such counties there may be which
have held up the reports of the ex-
aminers is not known and the mem
! hers of the local boards have not re-
ported to the State Tax Board in the
matter.
If the money owing and all of it
prior to 1915. shall be collected and
! covered into the State treasury, and
that for years from 1915 to date is
| included. the State would not have
any deficit whatever.
Under the laws as they exist today.
! the treasurers will be forced to come
I'D with their settlements, and COM
pel!cd to force collections, or their
bondsmen will be asked TO make good
| the amount for which they are short
! have failed to collect.
| A table prepared by Auditor Moore.
| shows Just exactly what the several
county and city treasurerS will have
to do this year. the total amount due
in each county and city being taxes
on intangibles. money, merchants
! licenses. tax on property in hands OF
! fiduciaries and tax on incomes in
hands Of faucaries:
Alexandria county must pay s20,-
OO8. 90 and Alexandria City, $35; 1885,
O9.