The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1921-02-07
Chapter Nv.


and report all their possessions to
the assessor. He agrees that the
present system has developed in a
rather natural way with the tempta-
tion for everybody to shirk or treat
rather loosely the matter of report
I ing their taxable property He says
he thinks there are very few persons
in the county who are not perfectly
willing to pay their own proportion
of the taxes If everybody; else pays
his share. The worst complaints
against the taxes are prompted by
the idea that some are escaping the
payment Of part or all of their taxes
and making the burden heavier for
the other fellows. -s4 Al
Mr.. Berg says that has been very
noticeable in their community in the
matter of assessing livestock. There
are generally some herds feeding in
the fields down there using up the
hay and the pasturage in the winter
time and at about the time the as
SCISSOR gets out to work in the spring
they vanish into the desert. A nur7-
Der of years ago he gave the asses
sor's office some assistance in keep
ing track of these herds and in try
ing to get full assessment. At first
this assistance seemed appreciated
and it seemed to bring some results,
but as the years have dragged on it
seemed less and less appreciated and
Mr.. Berg says it got so that some Of
such herds ESCAPE assessment en-
tirely in this county. He mentioned
instances where he had telephoned
the assessor as to the presence of
herds that We're there at that time
and that We're arriving, to leave at
future dates that were already fixed
and even then such herds got away
without paying any taxes. Men in
charge of the herds, he said, had
sometimes boasted of how dead-easy
lit was to escape the payment of taxes
in Bingham county, but they said, as
soon IS they got over the lire into
adjoining counties, It was not. Mr..
Berg does not hesitate to say that
there is tax lodging going on in his
part of the country. He believes
that every man should be a good
citizen and to be good citizen he
should report all of his property to
the assessor, but he does not think
it incumbent upon a stock man to go
and hunt the assessor to give him the
information when he is going away.
Stockmen who feed and Craze their
herds in two or three different
counties do not consider it is their
duty to go and hunt up the assessor
in the different counties and render a
statement to them as to how many
months they are in set territory.
Mr.. Berg has acted as justice of
the peace in his precinct, has should
cred the responsibility of dealing out
justice when cases were brought to
him and he does not hesitate to say
that the assessing has not been done
as it ought to be in his locality.
S. A. Busenbark reports that he
has been reading the tax articles and
he fully approves of them Mr. 4
Busenbark handles cattle in the
highlands in the eastern part of the
county in the summer season and
out there escapes taxation. He says,
especially are there many flocks and /!
herds Of migratory stock that are
never assessed. He says there are
some that move about so much that |
it would be difficult for the assessor
down in Blackfoot hear of their |
presence or to receive a message !
about them and then leave his work |
to go, out and find them and make /
the assessment and the collections.
1t would be necessary for the asses
sor to make good many trips into
that country to get the most of them
and If somebody up there were
vested with police powers and ap-
pointed deputy assessor, if the selec-
ton of the right man were made, it
would be easy to keep tab on all the
herds and flocks, assess them accord
ing to law and make the collections.
He says he has at different times
notified the assessor of migratory
herds in that part of the county and
urged that assessment and collection
be made soon and II prompt action
were not taken, the county would
lose the tax. He has seen such herds
leave the county without having been
taxed, sometimes when 1t would have
been necessary for the assessor to
make special trip and at other
lines when there was abundant OPP
portunity to make the assessment
and the collections. He assures that
Bingham county has a tremendous
of property on the hills, up
n the highlands in the eastern part
II the county In spring and summer,
md that it is entirely feasible to
assess them and get the money on
he assessment. Mr.. Busenbark says
he wants to pay his share of the taxes
out that 1t irritates him to have to
Jay his share and the share of those
arge herds that Craze for weeks or
months in our territory and then
,ass on without carrying their share
II the burdens of this county. F,
F. M. Fisher, county clerk, says
hat he knows of three large herds
hat spent much of the season of ,
800 in the Willow creek country
nd when our grass was eaten of,
hey passed on into another county
Without being assessed and without ,
aging a cent Of taxes in our county.
dr. Fisher is in favor of having a
leputy assessor who lives in that
ountry, vested with police powers Is
o that he can promptly assess all !
I ~ l