The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1916-11-23
COUNTY TOWNS. ARE LOWER
City to Continue to Pay More Than SO
Per Cent of the Tax Even if the Re-
port Is Adopted by County Board
Report Shows True Values.

of personal property 95.891% of the
true value. This is shown by the
annual report of Joseph E. Dalton, as
SCISSOR of incomes, which was submitted
to the members of the County Board
today. The percentage Of the valua-
tion to the true value is higher in the
city Of Kenosha than in any of the
towns of the county. The report is
most enlightening along these lines and
Mr.. Dalton has made a mass of figures
to show that Kenosha as a city is get
ting nearer to the true value of prop
erty in making assessments than any
other part of the county.
In considering real estate assess
ments the percentage to true value
shown in the various towns is as fol-
lows: Brighton, 8O.93Ro; Bristol,
874896; Paris, 1917; Pleasant Prai-
RE, 86.84%; Randall, 70.76@o; Salem,
1885,; Somers, 78.73%, and Wheat
land, 85.279o. The report shows little
higher percentage in the assessment of
personal property in the towns of the
county, but the percent in none of the
towns exceeds $3.50. Some interesting
additions are made to the assessed
value of the county by the assessor of
incomes. He adds $1,070.953 to the
city as the value of the electric rail
way property. He adds in the same
manner 50, 263 to the town of Pleasant
Prairie and $118,278 to the town of
Somers. His estimate of the true value
of all property in the county, including
the electric railway property, is
$58,854,44 as compared with $51, 1884,
512 returned by the assessors.
IF the report of the income assessor
is followed in making the annual
equalization report for the county, the
city of Kenosha will pay 62.628096 of
the taxes to be assessed against the
county. The next largest percentage
will be paid by. the town of Somers,
little over seven per cent. His divi-
sion of the tax burden in the county
is as follows: Brighton, 3.2311q6; Bris-
toll, 4.1206@o; Paris, 3.2761qo; Pleasant
Prairie, 6.2899%; Randall, 5.4143%;
Salem, 5.46679o; Somers, 7.OoO19o and
Wheatland, 2.5731@o.
Mr.. Dalton presents his figures prac-
tically without comment. He says in
regard to true values of personal
property: "These values are obtained
by inspection. I made a number of
personal property assessments in each
taxing district, not knowing what
values were fixed by the local assessor.
The same method was used in all dis
tricts and ratios obtained and used on
the total personal property, which gives
what I term true value or a conser-
vative assessment. /"
In regard to the real estate true
values he says: '~These are obtained
by using five year sales method, drop
ping out all trades, None dollar sales
and abnormal sales. These sales have
been carefully worked out in fairness
TO all taxing districts in the state and
are as near right for one district as
for another. I submit "true values -
both of personal and of real estate to
your honorable body, asking that the
same be adopted by you. In so doing,
each taxing district viii pay it's just
share of state and county tax as nearly
as can be worked out from sales, in
spection and figures. The state taxes
are apportional to each county in the
state as a unit, and it is a matter for
our County Board of Supervisors to so
equalize the county as to have each
taxing district pay it's just share. AS
per instruction from the Wisconsin
Tax Commission, / have added to the
values of Somers, Pleasant Prairie, and
Kenosha certain amounts for street
railways. This represents $50 of the
value of said railways in those local.
ties and $3.50 of the tax on same will
be returned by the state to the above
taxing districts,