Sentence:  Taxation of tangible movable property in Rhode Island has <WSD>been</WSD> generally of a `` hands off '' nature due possibly to several reasons : ( 1 ) local assessors , in the main , are not well paid and have inadequate office staffs , ( 2 ) the numerous categories of this component of personal property make locating extremely difficult , and ( 3 ) the inexperience of the majority of assessors in evaluating this type of property . 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  have the quality of being; (copula, used with an adjective or a predicate noun)