The coastland times. [volume] (Mnateo [i.e. Manteo], N.C.) 1947-1959, 1958-07-04
BOARD
Continued from Page One)

millions turned out to be $25,124,-
1888, just about enough more prop
erty than the books showed last
year to yield sufficient taxes to
pay for the appraisal job and the
expense it's going to cost before it
ever gets Strengthened out.
In fact, the Commissioners have
repudiated their own helpers, and
put their stamp of disapproval on
the Job. They have wiped off S.
94O,517 of the New Jersey figures.
1t doesn't cost the Commissioners
anything; they looked after their
own property, and were passing
this wasteful cost on to the people,
mostly to non-voters.
| What looked like scheme to lift
100000 extra tax dollars, mostly
out of non-residents and resort
property has blown-up and gone
with the wind.
What looked like wonderful
scheme to win most all the voters
solid, by cutting down their taxes
and making those who had no
voice in the county government
paw nearly all the bills, has be-
come as flat and discredited as a
last years toadfish.
The voters rose in wrath at the
polls when they found themselves
and their county discredited and
spoke their piece.
1t was a pretty raw deal, and
it's been raw all the way through,
and still is that way. In the recent
slashing of nearly nine million dol
lars from the books, put there at
so high a price, the Commissioners
have been looking out nicely for
their friends. Tremendous cuts
were made before the primary
where it looked good for votes;
tremendous cuts have been made
since to friends of the Board, and
increases have been made on some
taxpayers who did not support the
Board.
We might ask some questions:
The nearly nine million dollars
in valuations turned in by the New
Jersey crowd would have yielded
the county nearly ninety thousand
dollars in taxes. 1t represented
over half the increases in apprai-
sails turned in by the bunch who
are to receive the $4,000.
If the appraisers were compe-
tent and fair in the first place,
why would the board throw away
over half their work?
In so doing, haven't the Com
missioners by their own actions,
admitted it was not a fair and
square job? Or if the commission
ers now contend it was good and
fair job, why have they thrown
away nearly nine million dollars
in taxable property?
Did they think it would buy
them enough votes to be returned
to office? If the property were
thrown out for this reason, can
they claim to be fair and honest
men?
What Really Happened
The Commissioners went ahead
and hired this New Jersey firm to
do the job, and put them to work
last August. They might be the
most competent people in the
world, but some of the help they
sent to do the work, did anything
but convince the public they did a
competent job.
The Commissioners never inves-
tigated anything about the finan-
cial responsibility of these people.
They never paid any attention to
their work or got any progress re-
ports on what had been going on
until several months had gone by,
and the appraising company had
collected nearly half of the pay
before anything was turned in.
Although this was an undertake
ing calling for a public relations
program of high order, the County
Board didn't consider the people of
sufficient Importance to take them
into their confidence. No informa-
ton was sent to the public, telling
how, why and when all this big
undertaking was necessary.
Nothing was told the people
about who would do the job, when
they might be expected to appear
on the premises. Men went unex-
pectedly on peoples properties
without saying anything to the
homeowner; they carried no ere
dentials, they manifested no court
esy such as any person owes to
one when he goes on his premises.
At least one County Commits
sioner said he didn't know who the
men were, himself, until neighbors
began to complain to him and he
made investigation.
If one may judge by some of
the appraisals that were made,
then some of the appraisers could
not be expected to know how to
treat people, but the County Com
missioners should have known bet
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