The weekly tribune and the Cape County herald. (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) 1914-1918, 1918-03-29
Board of Equalization Meets
Monday to Revise
Valuation
PUBLIC UTILITIES MAY
GET ANOTHER INCREASE
Railroads, Telegraph and Tele-
phone Valuation Also Sub.
ject to Big Boost.

A considerable increase of the ta
valuation of all public service cor
porations operating in the city vii
be advocated before TIE board of eq
ualization, which meets next Monda
in view of the fact that the last Stat
: Legislature changed the tax assess
mcnt law requiring that the tax as
sessment be made on the full valu,
/ Of the property, instead Of forty PEI
cent as has been customary under tht
old law.
! The increase will bring the tota
, tax assessment of all public service
, corporations, including the water ans
light company, the telephone com
pany and telegraph and the railroads,
to approximately 100000, while the
present assessed valuation is about
$2S0,O00. The Missouri Public It'll
tiles Company, tops this list with an
assessment of S15O,OOO for the per-
sOnal property exclusive of all real
estate owned by the company.
According to the figures compiled
by County Clerk Blucher Sperling on
the face Of the assessments for the
last year, the Frisco railroad headed
the list of tax assessments for pub
lie service corporations in Cape Cir
ardeau County The total tax assess
ment of the Frisco railroad property
in the county, is given as S1,G1G,7S2
of which amount S9S,10S goes to the
city of Cape Girardeau.
The Frisco has two and enc third
miles of tracks in the city. The pas
senger station is assessed at $4,000
and the freight depot at $4,000. The
remainder Of the tax assessment of
the Frisco is made on the value of
the tracks. machinery and other
building the railroad owns with
the city limits.
The tax assessment of the property
Of the Cape Girardeau Northern rail
road within the city limits. is $1,000.
the total asscSsEen. in the county
$247.700. The property of the Wes
tern Union Telegraph Co. in the cit
is assessed at S1.3O3.4O and for ne
entire county at S1,S25. The Bell
Telephone Company's property in the
city is assessed at S2,53l, anG 1t SO,
80 for the entire county.
Mayor Hirsch said last n;Eht, when
asked whether he would 2Sil for a.
increase Of the assessment G :nesc
public service corporations, h" vO'Iii
not take any action tor the r,ason
that he would sur,eT',ar Office in 4
short time. As a rule, ne SAID, the
board of equalization icit this matter
TO the new mayor, wneaev"r 1 change
of administration was iua.
The board of eoLa li%.itior of the
will go into session next Mon
day and pass on all cases brought be-
fore it. 1t usually requires several
weeks to settle all tax assessments in
the county. The mayor and city as
SCISSOR of Cape Girardeau are men,
bers of this body.
City Counselor knehans and sever
al members of the city council said
tbav yyera in favor of increasing the
tax assessments of these public ser
vice companies in Justice to the in
crease of other property in the coun-
ty. In making his returns to the
state office County Clerk Sperling
based the tax valuation on nearly the
full value of the property as is re-
quired by the new law, and for that
reason, city officials contend the as
sessment of the public service COM
missions should also be increased.
The assessment of the Missouri
Public Utilities Co, in 1916 was Sl6.
900 on the personal property. After
a vigorous fight last year city Off
cials succeeded in having the assess
ment raised to S150,000 They ask
ed to increase the tax valuation of
this company to $300,OOO but the
board of equalization cut this amount
one half.