Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-03-27
lee QUESTIONED
IN COUNTY PROBE
Montgomery Grand Jury Told
1923 Silver Spring Assess
mentS Were Fair.

Special Dispatch to The Star.
ROCKVILLE, Nd, March 27.-Maj.
e. Brooke Lee, speaker Of the Maryland
House Of Delegates and Democratic or
ganization leader in Montgomery Coun-
ty, spent half an hour before the grand
Jury here today. He appeared in re-
Spouse to a summons In connection
with the investigation that has been
under way since Monday of charges by
Rockville independent newspaper re-
decting on the management of county
affairs. Upon leaving the grand Jury
room, he issued this statement:
II testified before the grand jury to-
day as to the manner in which the
1923 general property assessment was
conducted in the Silver Spring section
and throughout Montgomery County.
and also, testified about the location
and general public Justification Of the
Maryland extension of Sixteenth street
to Silver Spring and Baltimore via
Laurel, ColeSville or Olney and the To-
cation as well as with regard to the
reasons for building the new Silver
Spring Bethesda Highway.
Assessments Called Fair.
81 testified that the 1928 general prop
erty assessments in the Silver spring
section was not only made fairly, equit-
ably and openly, but that County Com
missioner Lacy Shaw had even gone be-
yond the requirements Of the State and
county assessment laws with regard to
publicity Of assessments by preparing
a map showing the 1923 assessed value
Of lots, subdivisions and acreage In the
entire Silver Spring district which was
posted in the county building at
Silver Spring and which the public was
invited through newspapers to inspect.
More than 40 citizens of the Silver
Spring neighborhood inspected this 1923
new assessment map, and they were so
thoroughly satisfied with the fairness OF
the assessment figures that affected
property Of that section that only one
protestant appeared before the county
commissioners in response to the usual
notices mailed every property owner
that their new 1928 assessment would
stand unless they appeared before the
Board OF County Commissioners and
that this particular taxpayer afterward
wrote the Board Of County Commits
sionerS that she would not have ap-
peared but for misinformation given
her before her appearance before the
board.
Business District Methods.
81 further testified that the assess
ments In the Silver Spring business dis
tr1ct were graded by city squares and
were the same throughout each lot and
were the same on opposite sides of
Georgia avenue extended, and that no
tax discrimination existed in the Silver
Spring business district or in any other
section of the county as far as the
county commissioners, assessor or other
county officials knew.
This equitable level of tax assess
ments throughout the county Is sub
stantiated by the fact that East Mont
gomery County borders on Prince
Georges County, on the northeast on
Howard County and on the north and
northwest on Frederick County and
that 81 900 worth Of property is assessed
at equivalently the figure for tax pur-
poses in Montgomery County that it is
assessed in the adjacent sections of
Continued on page q Column a.