The copper era and Morenci leader., 1921-12-30
1922. TAX PROBLEMS DISCUSSED AT
 STATE MEET

Phoenix, AriZ., Dec. 21-All officers were reelected by the State County Assessors association at it's annual
 business meeting here.
 The officers are:
 ". J. Wager, Santa Cruz county, president; w. O. Ruggles, Mohave county, vice president; E. C. Gen
 try, Yavapai county, secretary, and Thad Moore, Pinal county, assistant secretary tF
 Phoenix, Dec 21-With represen. tatives from every county in the state present with the exception of Apache tax problems were discussed at a conference of the state tax commits sion and county assessors. The day
 was given. over to preliminary dis i cussion of the 1922 assessment and it will require at least another half
 days time in which to look into gen eral conditions in the different indus tries before action is taken, accord ing to Charles R. Howe, chairman of
 the tax commission, who is presiding
 over the conference.
 MT. Howe said yesterday that ac- tion on all classes of property will be taken at the same time. which will be only after a general discussion of the abstract of assessment by each
 county present
 The days conference revealed no marked improvement over conditions of year ago, although the outlook is
 promising with the report resumption of mining after the first of the year.
 The 1920 conference was notable for appeals from the different indus f,.in Tor of hot time. the commission announced it's policy by refusing to shift the burden from one industry to the other, com
 ing out frankly for an equitable dis tribution of the taxes. Bank Assessments Topic s One of the interesting discussions at the opening. session had to do with bank assessm where there had been bank failures, It was shown | that there was only a slight loss to the county and, state in taxes in view ot the substitution of assessing the phy. sica property of the bank instead oi l its capital stock surplus and nndi I yided profits. It also was shown that I in many cases where banks had re ] opensd there was an incraase n cap | ital stock which helped maintain a
 balance in the counties where other l banks failed to resume business. This | was true particularly in Maricopa county
 I Stock and merchandise assess I ments will show a loss in practically | every county. especially in the min 1 ing towns George Henshaw of Co | chise county reported reduction oi
 stocks by sales being conducted in Bisbee and Douglas. while loss oi l population due to shut down of rfe | mines in Gila and GreeIlee county have resulted in numerous ''at cost
 sales which have depleted stocks. IT l this county, Harry Piarce. assessor said that an inventory of stocks will
 show less than a year ago.
 New Auto Law Discussed 1 One of the most important items tt
 claim the attention of the tax mer had to do with automobiles. Under l the act passed by the last Legislature
 automobile licenses will be di'tribn ted by the assessors rather thar | through the office of the secretary O state to whom the assessors vii make monthly reports and transmit 1 the license fees. Ernest R. Hall, sec | retary of state, appeared before the | assessors answering the many ques tions put to him relative to handling
 the automobile business. MT. Hal [ furnished each assessor with a copy l of the automobile owners in the state l numbering 35,o56, giving the license
 number and the make of car. Uset
 car valuations will be based on thu
 national used car market list witf
 slight reductions in all probability The "curbstone dealer is one of the
 big problems difficult or the assess l ors te solve in that 1t is impossible l to base his assessment on the same 1 plan a the bona fde dealer, .whicf l is one twelfth of the yearly sales. | Those here in attendance fol
 the conferences were Geo. Henshaw assessor, and James Mcdonald, de putv, assessor of Cochise county , William. Beeson, Coconino county ", c. Duncan, Gila; J. M. Alfred | lGraham; R. J. Coleman, Greenlee
 Harry Pierce, Maricopa; w. O. Rug
 gles, Mohave; w. E. Shumway, Ma | vajo; V. S. Griffith, Pima; That
 Moore, Pinal; V. J. Wager. Santf | Cruz; c. E. Gentry, Yavapai and A | B. Ming, Yuma Tom Trevillian, city assessor of Phoenix, and J. S. Brigg: ! representing the farmers of Yum;
 valley, also were in attendance a tl,a ;,,it;ol .acciop