The Monmouth inquirer., 1924-05-22
Higest Rate State Ever Has
Known, 1851 Per 500, De-
spite Increased RatabIeS.
MUNICIPAL SPENDING ORGY
Jerseys Average Tax Reaches Peak
Point-TotaI Of s165,s26, e14 in
This Years Budgets
Reported to Board.

announced InaC II would be S3.67l
per $500 of valuation, an increase
of SOTO over the average tax rate"
for 1928. This is the rate used by the
state board in making the assessment
against first-class railroad property
and the gross receipts of street rail-
ways, gas and electric light companies
for the tax in lieu of the tax on per-
sonal property.
Not only has thu rate itself great
ly advanced, but there has also been
a tremendous increase in the total
I ratables of the State For 1924 the
ratables will amount to $4,504, 047,295,
an increase of 1915, 723,928 over 1923.
This is by far the largest increase in
ratables the State has ever had With
the increased rate and the increased
ratables, there will be a total tax
raised to meet municipal budgets of
$165, 6,814.45, an increase of $751;
307,6S6.98 over 1928. The amount
raised for municipal budgets is also
the largest the municipalities have
ever spent.
For the tax year of 1924 the State
board has been particularly active in
forcing adequate assessments in
many Of the counties. Many millions
OF dollars have been added to the
ratables through it's Investigations
and orders. Even with the increased
ratables, however, the vast increase
in budgets resulted in the swollen
average rate" In 1907 the average
rate" was S1.627. 1t then increased
gradually until 1917, when it reached
1924. In 1918, because of a decision
by the Supreme Court striking new
rate in Jersey City. the average rate"
went down to 1929 Since that time
it has mounted rapidly until the
present year, with $3.671.
Anti-Gun Law Nuiified
Attorney General Katzenbach con-
firmed the discovery of Senator Case
that the Hirshfeld Assembly bill
providing heavy penalties for carry
ing deadly weapons, passed by the
Legislature, had not properly become
law He finds that the act is rem
dered useless through failure of the
Legislature to incorporate important
amendments in the draft of the stat
ute which Governor Silzer signed.
The act remains operative until the
Supreme Court declares otherwise,
however. The Senate March 4 adopt
ed some 25 amendments in which the
Assembly concurred March Z, and the
measure was signed by Governor Sill
ger Marc II. The copy approved by
the Governor does not contain the i'm
portant additions.
Under a Supreme Court decision,
rendered December IL, 1922, in a
similar set of circumstances, the
Hirshfield law, by reason of its de-
fects, is invalid. That case was known
as Jaegle and Wickham, which de-
clared invalid 1911 statute. The
Court in that case said: "a Dill hav-
ing been introduced into and passed
by the House of Assembly, was sent
by it to the Senate for the latters
consideration, and action upon the
measure. The Senate, upon it's con-
sideration of the BILL amended it in
several particulars, passed it in its
amended form, and returned it to the
Assembly and that body then passed
The bill as amended. Thereupon the
dill as originally passed by the AS
..embly and without the amendments
adopted by the Senate, and afterward
concurred in by the Assembly, was
presented to the Governor and was,
after consideration, signed by him.
Held that, as the amended bill as
adopted by both Houses has never re-
ceived the approval of the Governor
and as the bill to which the Gov
Oh, Cd
not the act which, in point OF fact
was rassed into Il law by the Legis-
lature, neither the one nor the other
as become part of the statute law
of the State"
The amendments made violation OF
tae anti-gun law high misdemeanor
and provided elaborate machinery for
licensing of permit holders and for
issuance of permits, together with
numerous corrections in the phrase
ology of the statute.
Another faulty 1924 statute was dis
covered when it became known that
Ne Legislature neglected to include
amendments to a bill by Assembly
man Barison, of Hudson, effecting
property deeds. The measure signed
nv Governor Silzer March IL did not
include last-rlinute changes by the
Senate and House. The Barison act,
known as chapter No. $780, was in
tended to validate land conveyances
where the name of one Of the parties
had been omitted.
Plant More oyster Seed
The State Department Of Shell
Fisheries had arranged to stock the
great Delaware Bay natural oyster
reds with about $4,000 bushels of
SHELLS as soon as the present planting
SEASON is ended, late in June. The
shells will be purchased at the big
shucking houses in Maryland and the
work will begin in time to get them
anu,r Cor the late summer spawning