Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1922-01-19
,]N|| \ SAYS
TAX BURDENS
MUST BE CUT
Governor Makes Strong
Plea For Economy to
County Commissioners.

Il jamestown, NJ. D.. Jan. 19.-Tax
burdens of the people of North Dako-
In must be reduced, Governor r. A.
Nestos told the county commissioners
or the state in their annual session
mere; today. Increase in the general
taxes for the five years preceding and
including 1920 had been from Sc Ia
to lit 6-10 per cent, the governor de-
clared, and the tax burden has reach
ed the point where economy must be
rracticed IF it is to become possible
Tor the people to continue living,
working and raising their families
here"
by law, you 'superintend the fiscal
affairs of your respective counties and
property, large funds. and a very inn
portant public business" Governor
Nestos told the commissioners after
his greeting. with the experience
that most of you have had in dealing
with the problems confronting the
county commissioners, in raising and
expanding the funds of a county, you
realize I am sure, not only the i'm
p%ortance, but the difficulty of hand
ling the public business, %intrusted to
your care. economically inc we'll.
A a body, you represent pretty
well~the aggregate public business of
the state, and you T in a position
to speak for and also to speak to, a
large proportion of the citizenship of
our state. 1t is to you, therefore, as
representatives of the people of the
state, in close and constant touch with
the taxpayers in you counties, that I
desire to speak today on some of the
problems confronting us-confronting
the state as a whole and also the diff
ferent counties and local political sub
divisions of the state.
Big Increase Shown.
There is usually a great deal of
talk about economy and then very lit
tie lone in actual practice, and I am
sure that you realize that the situa-
tion. is such now that we need to
practice as well as talk, and to exer-
else a rigid economy in all the bust
ness affairs of our state; counties and
local political subdivisions. pre-
sumo. that you are familiar with the
figures and that you realize h a from
1916, to 1920 inclusive the total ZEN
eral property taxes levied, increased
rs follows:
State ...................1os 7-1o%
County .............. 81 3-10%
City. Town and Village. rs 20
Township ssh %
THE figures for 1921 are not yet
available but you know that these
will show still further increases, and
willsmake the percentages still larger.
These are the increases in general
property taxes only and we have in
addition for state purposes all he
special axe hat have been imposed
in recent years, such as ON automo-
biles,E oil, etc, and a three cent hail
tax..5For the local subdivisions, we
~ - n leo $h4 e10o{o1 ooa1cponr$o ~
every kind, character and description.
J. do not suppose there is a person
present but feels that this increase is
larger than it would to be, and that
we must discover some method of cur
failing the cost Of administering the
public business of our state, and the
various subdivisions thereof. We
must. however, also realize that to go
back to the levies and expenditures of
1915 and before would be impossible.
There are more duties imposed upon
the, public officials, and more public
business intrusted to them than eve
before, and the people who have in
trusted this business to these officials
have a right to expect and do expect
that it will be looked after efficiently
and economically. TIC make such re-
auctions in the levies or expenditures
as will destroy or seriously cripple the
public service would be a serious mis-
take. There must be enough money
provided to secure the successful man.
agement Of these different lines of
public business.
Urges Impartiality.
During these weeks, when I have
been writing some of you about the
responsibility and p~racticability of re-
ducing expenses and levies, I have
+. been approached and written to by a
number of people who are interested
in special institutions or lines Of The
public business. Without exception.
they approved Of the program of econ
omy and express a conviction that it
must he carried out if it is to be-
come possible for the people to con-
tinue living, working and raising their
families here. But usually they ex-
press a fear that most OF the cut is
going to come in the field where they
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