Evening star., 1923-04-11
NEW ASSESSORS
IN VALUATION FIGHT
Succeed Montgomery County
Board, Which Had Quit
Over Differences.
Special Dispatch to The Star.

Special Dispatch to The Star.
ROCKVILLE, Md, April lin the
places of Edward II. Jones. Fl. Latane
Lewis and w. Lyles Offutt. recently
resigned, the county commissioners
have appointed John Z. Libbey. jr.,
Edward J. Murphy and Albert l..
Moore to complete the work of re-
assessing all real and personal prop
erty in Chevy Chase and Bethesda,
parts Of Bethesda district, including
Bradley Hills. Friendship Heights,
Drummond. Somerset, Edgemoor and
Chevy Chase.
Quit Over Differences.
The designations of the three
assessors were the result OF difter-
enceS Of opinion between them ana
the county commissioners, VINO slt as
board of equalization and review.
as to valuations the assessors placed
on property in the territory In which
they operated. The assessors, SO they
state, endeavored to follow the IN
structions of the state tax commits.
sion and the law of the state ana
assess upon a fair value basis. put
the commissioners, 1t seems, CONSIDER
that in many cases the assessments
are entirely too high, especially when
compared with assessments in other
sections of the county. 1t Is said that
the new assessments in the Chevy
Chase and Bethesda neighborhoods
show increases over the old. which
range from so to 1000 per cent.
Letter Explains Position.
In letter to DIR. Benjamin c.
Perry president of the board OF
county commissioners, Mr.. Jones, one
of the late assessors, says. in part:
Several years ago the legislature
gof the state passed a bill creating. a
state taxing commission and requir-
ing that all valuations of real estate
in the future for assessment pur-
poses be uniform throughout the
state and on an actual cash value
basis-not on d percentage basis.
Acting under the authority vested in
them, the commissioners of this county
Latane Lewis and myself to assess the
taxable real estate in Bethesda dis
trict, a reasseSsment of all proper
ties throughout the state having been
directed by the last legislature.
Our instructions were explicit
the law of the state-to assess upon
a fair value basis. You tell me that
the assessments returned by us 1or
that part of the district we have fur
nished are too high. i tell you that
we have made them in accordance
with the law and our best judgment,
as we IT. .be You osasr say they nGrtians aTe of
districts that have returned, and cite
particularly Silver Springs. If that
be true, and it is up to you to know.
then it is your job. as a. board of
equalization, to reduce the assess
ments in this district to the same
level Do not direct US to make the
reduction when such reduction Will
be and is. in my Judgment. violative
of the law and our oath of office. The
statute expressly provides this as
your work, not ours.
Horizontal Reduction Proposed.
"As a taxpayer in this district !
am deeply interested in seeing that
we do not bear more than our snare
of the burden of the county and state
tax 1 do want, however, to see
us bear our part. Therefore. 1 would
suggest that horizontal reduction
be made on all the properties turned
in by US, this reduction being made
to bring this district into alignment
with the other districts of the county
and state This reduction might be
40 per cent on land values and 20 or
20 per cent on the improvements.
These figures are merely a sugges-
tion. but do not, under any c~fcum-
stances. make reductions merely IN
the cases of those who have protested,
leaving a much higher assessment on
the adjoining owner who has re-
manned silent"