Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-10-09
Richards Figures Show In
crease of s2s, 6ee, 263 Over
Last Year Assessment.
$4,000, 900 IN TAXABLE
LAND Is WITHDRAWN
Assessor Asks Law Compelling
Grantees to Disclose Amount
cf Purchase Price.

Complete figures on the real property
assessment on the books for the cur
rent fiscal year. released by Tax As
SCISSOR William P. Richards today, show
the total value of assessed and taxable
real property in the District this year
to be 81 ,211, 162, sos. an increase of $28,-
699263 over the assessment for the
fiscal year ended June 80 last. The
assessment is made up of 2,077 030
in land values and 1853 ,085,578 in i'm
provements This will yield tax on
the current tax rate-$1.70 per 500
valuation-of s2O,5s9,764, which does
not take into account interest and pen
alties.
The figures are compiled in such
way this year, for the first time, to in
dictate roughly the effect on the rate
able property Of the program Of the
Federal Government of condemning
property for its own use. AS soon as
title passes to the Federal Government.
the property is no longer aSSeSSable or
taxable by the District. These figures
show that in spite of the $28,000,000
increase in the assessment base there
was withdrawn from taxation land as
sessed at about $6,000,000.
Land Values Decrease.
The figures for squares 1-159 show
o decrease in land value of $207, GOT;
in squares 160-352 of $2.604, 063; in
squares 353-50O of s3,199.5o1. These
are the squares, according to Mr.. Rich
ards, principally affected by the build
ing program near the Mall. There are
three other sections registering de-
creases.
These are squares 5101-529e, q de-
crease of S1623: squares 5300-5599,
decrease of S8,028, and squares
66OD-58s4. a decrease of S15.906. Ac-
cordinp to Mr.. Richards, these are
SQUARES where condemnation for park
purposes has been going on.
At the same time Mr.. Richards made
public his annual report, the principal
recommendation of which was for law
compelling grantees of real estate to
disclose the amount of the purchase
price, for use in assessment work. The
proposed law would compel the grantee
in every transfer of title to real estate
to file with the deed, in the Recorder
Of Deeds once, sealed statement OF
the true consideration involved. The
Recorder of Deeds would submit this
sealed statement to the assessor with
out breaking the SEAL The information
thus obtained by the assessor would b.
kept confidential, and used only for
assessing the property involved under
the assessment laws.
Needs Hedp From Congress.
In support of this recommendation
Mr.. Richards reports that 1t has been
impossible to collect all sales and at
the same time ascertain the facts bear
ing on them, even with the larger
force of field assistants now at his
command. The time consumed in fol-
lowing up a sale Of a large property
is very great, he said, and he feels he
needs further help from Congress in
ascertaining sale prices.
Personal tax on automobiles, col
lected with the issuance of tags for
the first time this year, yielded the
District $214.13 the report states
Not less than 10000 automobiles fur
nished only the minimum tax for the
half year of so cents. indicating an
assessed value of S57 or less. the re-
port states. The average tax on the
approximately 100000 automobiles was
S210.
Motorists also furnished the District
with S1,369, 391.76 by way of the gaso-
line tax, collected from So companies.
Mr.. Richards estimated that each auto
mobile owner was responsible for the
payment of about SO in the year TO
the District in gasoline tax.
Mr.. Richards closes his report with an
appeal for more Office space for his ITO
employees.