Evening star., 1953-11-18
Civic Group
Hits Waters
Tax Proposal
Sees Montgomery
Hurt by Slash
In Prince Georges

IN TTinCe georges
Montgomery County ought to
follow suit if the Prince Georges
County commissioners carry out
their threat to make a 10 per
cent across-the-board cut in
property assessments, a commit
tee of the Montgomery County
Civic Federation declared today.
The Federation's public finance
and budget committee released
the text of resolution it has
drafted for presentation to the
general federation meeting De-
cember IA.
It was the latest in an in
creasing string of explosive re-
actions to the recent action of
the Prince Georges Commission
ers in ordering their county as
SCISSOR to be prepared to make a
blanket 10 per cent assessment
cut by December 81. The COM
miSSioners will have to pass a
formal order before the reduc-
ton can be made.
Waters Disturbed.
Prince Georges Commissioner
Edward j. Waters, author of his
boards directive to the assessor.
was disturbed by reactions to his
proposal, particularly from neigh
boring Montgomery.
He told a reporter last night:
They have all they can do
Gin Montgomery to keep their
own house in order without look
ing over their back fence at us.
We don't interfere in their
affairs"
The Montgomery federation
committees resolution said such
a blanket reduction in Prince
Georges property assessments
would improve that county's
position with respect to the
State school equalization fund
at the expense of Baltimore City
and the other % counties"
Cites School Funds.
Montgomery County "already
contributes more to, and receives
less from, the school equalization
fund than does Prince Georges
County, and would be peculiarly
injured by the unilateral policy
proposed by the Prince Georges
County commissioners" the
resolution added. 1t then called
upon the Montgomery County
Council to make a 10 per cent
reduction in assessments if
Prince Georges does it first.
State school equalization funds
are distributed on the basis of
each county'S aSsessable base,
with the poorer counties receiv-
ing relatively bigger slice of
the State aid.
Deeley K. Nice, chairman of
the State Tax Commission, said
last week that the Prince
Georges assessment reduction
proposal would amount to "a
raid on the State school equali-
zation fund" He indicated the
commission would not tolerate
the act, even if it had to go to
court.
Follows Strong Letter.
The civic federation commit
tees release followed on the
heels of strongly-worded letter
to Mr.. Nice from the Montgom-
cry Appeals Tax Court, the
agency concerned with assess
ment appeals there. The court
called on the tax commission
Immediately to eliminate appar-
ent inequities in assessments
between counties and specifically
attacked the Prince Georges
proposal as highly unfair.
"We cannot and will not con-
done and sit idly by if other
counties violate such (uniform
assesSment) laws in order to
minimize their equalization pay
ments," Carey E. Quinn, court
chairman, declared in his letter
released yesterday.
Meanwhile, the Accokeek PTA
sent a letter to the Prince
Georges County Commissioners
stating that the need for more
schools is too great for any tax
cut at this time. Earlier, the
Camp Springs PTA executive
committee had strongly con-
demned the assessment-reduc-
ton proposal.