The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1919-04-28

500. ~ 4. M55,g ss-g ID \ s(VOuCluueO
farmer who paid $40 in state taxes
last year will pay $40 this year. Mr..
Kositzky says that the state levy this
year will be at least As mills and
probably five mills. Mr.. Kositzky
says it will be necessary to raise
more than. six million dollars this
year for state taxes on general prop
erty. Now in Mr.. Kositzky's estimate
Of the taxes which he said the state
will have to levy he included one mill
ion twenty thousand dollars as inter-
est on the II million dollar bond is
sue. .~.
Minimum Six Per Cent.
"That would be 6 per cent on the
II million and that would make one
million twenty thousand dollars, and
Mr.. kositzky also included $685. 66
which he says the state would have
to set aside every year as a sinking
fund on those bonds. Now, ladies and
gentlemen, Mr.. Kositzky made very
serious error there, very large error,
because as matter of fact interest
can only be paid on seven million
dollars of those bonds. Interest
must be paid by the state unless it
Is raised by the earnings of these en-
terprises. Interest must be paid by
the state on the mill and elevator
bond, and on the Bank of North Da-
kota bonds, but by no possibility can
interest be paid on the ten million
dollar real estate bonds.
10 to 20 Years
"rhese bonds arc not issued until
the state treasurer has first mort
gage in his possession worth twice
the value of the bonds. Those mort
cages run from ten to twenty years.
They are paid on the amortization
plan. .. That is, the interest due, and
or1e-twentieth of the principal back
every year by the terms of the mort
gage itself, so that by no possibility
can the state be called upon to pay
interest on those ten million dollar
bonds, so that instead of the interest
being one million twenty thousand
dollars year as Mr.. kositzky stated
in his article, the interest cannot pos
sibly exceed $42O,OOO year. Let us
get to the sinking fund. Mr.. yKositz-
ky said there must be an annual sink
ing fund Of 1866 $780,, Mr. Kositzky
ii mistaken. In the first place that
would. be; the sinking fund on the en-
tire II million dollars bonds, of which
have shown you ten million dollars
Of bonds is provided for by the mort
cages themselves.
@gg May Run 80 Days.
Furthermore, this law authorizing
the bonds distinctly provides that the
sinking fund does not have to be
bonds mature. Now, these bonds have
raised until five years before the
not been issued yet, but they prob
ably will run either twenty or thirty
years, probably 80 years, so that a
sinking fund does not have to be pro-
vided Until five years before these
bonds mature, ,or twenty-five years
from date, SO that the item which, Mr..
Kositzky set aside, $3.50, 666 as a sink
Ing fund docs not have to be raised
by.general taxation at all. Now those
are the facts, ladies and gentlemen,
md Mr.. Kositzky cannot dispute these
facts. Lam inclined to think that Mr..
Kositzky made that mistake honestly.
Lam. inclined to believe that he did
not read the law in question and did
not know the constitution was chang
ed, but that does not alter the fact,
ladies and gentlemen, that, a state Of
fetal has no business going around
attacking laws of the administration,
or making the prediction Of what the
taxes are going to be, when very OBJ
viously he has not read the laws in
question. Now wait a second. That
is not the only law Mr.. Kositzky has
not read. l have shown you where
he made an error of one million one
hundred sixty six thousand estimat-
ing the state taxes. Now am going
to show you where he made an error
Of one million two hundred and thirty
nine thousand, very small matter
merely million and quarter. Here
is how Mr.. Kositzky made that error
He said, am quoting the exact words
he said that the two mill school levy
will apply on the new assessed valua
ton.
Assessed Three Fold
s.You know that the valuation wa:
Increased threefold and under the ole
law we had a two mill school levy
Mr.. Kositzky said that the two mil
school levy would apply on the new
valuation. When as matter>of fac
gentlemen, the last legislature passet
atbill called Senate Bill 22O which
amended and re-enacted Section 1922
Of the compiled laws Of 1913 so tina
the. school levy is reduced from twt
mills to one mill. Now those are tn
facts, ladies' and gentlemen, and Mr.
Kositzky or no one else can success
fully dispute those facts, so that il
making his estimate for the taxes TO
1919 he figured in the two mill schoo
levy on the Valuation when the leg
isiAture reduced that levy to only on
mill and as / say, that makes diff
ference Of 1929 $50. All told, MI
K0sitzky has made errors in figurin,
up his taxation Of two million fou
hundred thousand dollars, and l de
~ MI. Kositzky or anyone else t.
check up a single error in this state
nSnt that / have made. That in thi
estimate Of taxes which he issued t
the Bismarck Tribune, on March 15tl
that he over estimated to the amour
II two million four hundred thousan'
dollars. Now He said that the take
this! year would be six per cent. Now
11dies and gentlemen, am not afrai1
ofithe facts. ! am not going to juggl
. bunch 81 figures here, l am not go