Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1922-09-26
TAX BOARD DELAY
HOLDS UP ACTION
To REDUCE COUNTY
Silver Bow Commissioners Are
Wrathy at Hardness in Fig
ures on State Assessments.
Special TO The Tribune.

IB1'hNi ~
Butte. Sept. 2j.-Whether Silver
Bow county can legally be reverted to
the second class or can legally exist
as a first class county is the question
that is confronting not only the county
officials but learned attorneys and tax
payers who are vitality interested. The
dereliction of the state board of equal
ization has been responsible for the
day to day -postpOnement of the neces-
sary action by the county commits
s%ioners, and from reports given out,
the state board does not seem to be
| able to give this county any of the
! desired information which is absolutely
| necessary before definite action can
be taken here.
As far back as September II, the
day after which action should have
been taken by the commissioners. a
letter was received by them from Neis
p. Haugen. who styled himself assist
| ant to the board. wherein it was stated
that the local assessor had not sub
| mitted assessments of ~inter-county
properties, also calling attention to the
fact that the net proceeds of the mines
! would probably be reduced somewhat
and that the iDter-county properties
were likely to remain in approximately
the same condition that they were last
year.
Replies to Haugen
1t was also stated that the board had
| not been able to take action in regard
TO these assessments and as soon as
1t did the commissioners would be
informed. Attention was also called
| to the fact that the Silver Bow county
| assessor seemed to have reduced the
assessment of properties by some
! SS,O 900 but that the state board
had not received any report of the
action of the county commissioners as
a board of equalization in that respect.
Byron f. Cooney, chairman of the
| county commissioners. sent a reply the
| following day in which he called Hau-
gems attention to the fact that the
commissioners were very sorry that
| the office of the state board was I'M
able to furnish the desired information,
also that the law made ii mandatory
| that certain action be taken by the
county board on certain dates and the
fact that the Helena office being be
hind in its work made it necessary for
the county commissioners to defer
action from day to day.
Figures Are Lacking
His letter continued: Our clerk
| and recorder informs us that he has
sent you all the necessary assessments
on inter-county properties by regis
tered mail in ample time. Possibly
| the fact that they were sent subject
to the attention of Mr.. John Edger-
ton 90 days ago accounts for this mis-
placement.
1T is our view that the shrinkage
of assessments in the sum of $4,000,
900 is a matter which your board has
no concern after it has been 'vised'
BY our board. You doubtless know
that in property not inter-county. net
proceeds of mines or public utilities
your board has no concern or Jurisdic-
ton. except in cases of appeal"
Mr.. Cooney stated that it was the
duty of the state board to fix the
values of inter-county public utilities
| and TO forward to the boards of county
commissioners such information so that
the county boards might ascertain Its
gross taxable valuation.
Silver Bow Not Derelict
lie said: The state board gave us
no statistics along these lines, so that
when we met September IL, as re-
quired by law to classify our county
we could not act-and have not acted
yet. We have a letter from Nels
Haugen asking us for various assess
ments. all of which have been sen
July Z TO John Edgerton, secretary OF
the board. These were registered anc
Edgerton receipted for them. Oui
assessor in the last few days made
duplicate copies entailing a vast amount
of work and sent them in again. There
seems to be much confusion in tbs
Helena board. due to the sudden res
ignation Of Mr.. Edgerton and the inter
mittent absence Of Mr.. Haugen who
was assistant 10 the board. Our ioca
board has complied TO the letter tt
every legal requirement TO assist thu
state board, and if there is any dere.
LECTION. it certainly is not in our board