The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, January 13, 1916, Page 2

in 193 theve has just been As = vesult of a deal first framed : T ‘over” at the state capital at Bist " : marck @ new persenal mpertyv -sdzcd-h fur use m the assessment ule is thewinmzflhn of one of the _boldest ‘and most : ingenious moves ‘yet to squeeze the last cent of taxes out ‘'of Farmers and householders ‘in towns and cities of North Dako- ta, at the same time lessening the burden on corporations, = merchants, hotels and other larger property Hholders. The new schedule for. the first fime taxes poultry, heretofore - not “appearing in any. of the personal property classifications. For the first. time in the history _of North: Dakota. farmers: will: have ‘to pay a personal property tax on ‘dogs, to which a separate- classifica- -ffon is devoted in the:new. schedule. Fences, hitherto untaxed, must be given a valuation and. taxed. Harness; saddlery and robes appear For the first time in the taxable list jn the new.schedute. These items are frankly .intended to add thousands of dollars in taxes to the burdenjalready carried by the farmers and yet not a single mnew classification has been added to get at any more “preperiy held by any other class of taxpayer, except per- haps propérty of the city working- man and householder, who will saf- fer with the farmer. On the con- trary, merchants, lawyers, dectors, hotels, garages, livery stables, baker- jes, laundries and almost every ‘ather: class of business, “including . pubhc service corporations, have had .all their former personal property class- ifications eliminated “amd-need give the assessor only a. lump value on all their pefvounl property, which is empected to reduce greatly their tax. Quiz “Farmer. Minutely In other words there has been in- augurated a plan to make the in-. quiry of the assessors as to personal property held by farmers and house- holders mest .exbaustive and minute, so that no property ‘can: possibly escape. ‘This class of taxpayer will have to answer at least 52 ques- tions. as to. his holdings and put a waluation on his geeds.in that many classifications. - ‘On. the other-hand other: class of taxpayer" will have teo submit to a amuch less rigid examin- ation than formerly, the intention- being to make the inquiry for-these taxpayers as superficial as possible.~ Instead of putting a4 valuation on his household, goods in one ‘lump sum, as in the past, the farmer: or city resident will have to segregate his household goods = into at least eight classes heretofore not. existing and give the assessor a value in each class, so that by no possibility can ' the merest trifle in, the line of. per- sonal property classed as household goods escape. assessment. For instance, farmers and city resi- dents in one schedule will have to state what is the value of furniture, utensils, wearing appafel and stoves. ¥n another they will have to place a value on rugs and carpets; in another on sewing machines, power driven washing machines, vacuum sweepers and refrigerators; in another on phonographs and talking = machines; in another on shotguns, rifles and re- wolvers; in anether on books, pie- tures, bric-a-brae and works’ of art, and there is a final classifivation in- cluding “other property used in the equipment —and furnishing of -the home or by the family and not list- ed in the foregoing.” . Can Conceal. Goods: All the ‘above classifications form- erly were consolidated - under the item “household goods,” in regard to which the small taxpayer had to answer: only one question a.nd g1ve one lump value, - to give ‘values to the assessor in as fimany as a score of class:ficatlons, in /4 ~classess in ‘some 'l Other taxpayers, who formerly had_ . THE NONPARTISAN LEADER - New Taxation Scheme To Bleed Farmers Pmonai Property Schedule Framed To Catch Smali- est Article ¢f Farmeis’ Property and Let Storesand - Corporations Off With Less Assessment----State “Auditor: amiBadrdaf Equalization Put Over. Beal.A = ation,’ by whxch system it w1ll be easy to conceal millions of dollars worth of personal property in the state. - A hotel, for instance, which former- 1y ahd to amswer as many questions as an ordinary householder in the city or on a farm, now will have merely to answer one question of the assessor and give a lump valuation on “stock, furniture and equipment \of all kinds” of the hotel. Hotels will not have to segregate their personal property like the farmer into classi- fications including furniture,’ car- pets; refrigerators, washing machines, books, pictures and works of art and put a separate value on each. To Tax More Cattle It is a well-kmown axiom among assessors and ‘taxing ‘officials that thé greater the-number of classifiea- tions personal property can be di- vided into for taxation the greater the total will be when the various’ items.are added together. In the course of assessment work it always- works “eut that way. Farmers and workingmen householders therefore may expect to see: their assessments greatly increased next spring, while merchants, hotels amd other classes of business which = have had their former classifications combined in one . naturally will get a much re- dueed assessment. ' The new schedule makes sb“'-dfiv’ fications. of . Hoilss “where four formerly existed and six ‘classifica- tions of cattle where five formerly existed, with the admitted intention of catching for taxation livestock not” before taxed on the farms, for . the new classifications do not apply ‘4o livery barns in towns and citfies, te merchants having horses used on delivery wagons nor ‘to :laundries, hotels or other might own Tivestock for one reaten or andther.. : For instance, horses and cattle less than one year old ‘have never been taxed in North Dakota. They are included on the mew schedule in a new, separate classification so they can’t be missed in future. In addi- tion it is the intention met- to let farmers in future class any fine bred. ~horses along with -the commoen run of animals. Such horses in the past have gone under the ordmary classi- fication along with the rest of farm livestock in the three segregations of one-year-olds, = two-year-olds and three-year-olds . and . over; but in future they will be put in a sep- erate class, ~with the intention of assessing them at a higher rate than the rest of the horses owned by the farmer. ; . Others Escape Burden ¢ While these new hvestock classi- fications will boost the farmers’ as- sessments on livestock, other owners of horses and cattle will get off eagier than in the past. All owners of Tivestock, except the private citi- zen in towns and farmers, will Tumpy the walue of livestock with the rest of their personal property and es- cape the new classifications. If it ended here private citizens in towns and farmers would be get- ting off easy. cials roint éut Another sinster as- pect of the proposition, one that may prove even, more of a discrimination - against the farmer and private per- " 'son owning: personal propsfiiy, County and city boards of equaliza- ues’ on’ varwus classes by raising valuations businesses which « ? mg' Tumber - However, ‘taxing offi-- “Under the new schedule the fsrm- er and private householder in town stand to be the only ones affected when raises on certain classes of property are ordered. They must stand the raise—the merchants, pro+ fessional men, public service corpor- ations and the rest benefitted by the new schedule would go scot-free. Raise to Hit Farmers Only For instance, , farmers and other householders - mre required to list automoblies ina° separate classifica- tion. Hotels, stores, real estate- and loan offices, hospitals;, public service corporations and the rest of ihe businesses mot Tequired to segregate their personal _property, giving a lump value for everything instead, usually ‘own . automobiles.. Suppose the board of ‘equalization finds: the value placed by the assesso¥ in. a certain county too low on “auto- mobiles and orders them mcreased, 20 per_cent. In this case the only owners of automobiles which the assessors’ re- turns would show would be the farmers - and the city householders. Their automebiles would be listed and the raise would at once he ef- Fective against them. But there would be wothing to show that the hotels, stores, public snrvim cOrpor- ;utuuls, etc., owned any uutomoiilu, iRty did they would cluded in the lumip assessment: “the board ‘of = -equakization $ have ne iden of how many, if @ny, cach owned or what part of lump assessment represented automobiles, Therefore the raise on uiom by no possible system or ueflml could aspply te these businesses and the farmer and private citizen own- @l ing autos would. be the only one » by the raise. : What would be true of raises ordered by boards of equalization on automobiles would be true of rgises ordered on any other of the muititude of classifications into whick farmers and other private citizens must seg- regate their personal property. Ap- proximately 52 classifications on the new schedule apply to iam:ets and pmrate citizens and a generat Traise on, any one of the valuations includ- ed-in these classifications would hit farmers and private citizens only. The other businesses mentioned all lump their assessments and so would not be affected by any one of these yossible . 52 . raises the board of equalizdtion -might make. : . Exempts Many Businesses - A list of the individuals and cor- porations permitted to lump personal proverty assessmenis under the new schedlue, © who will therefore have persoral property assessments: mater- ially reduced 'next year at the ex- pense’ of private householders and farmers-and who will ~escape any raises on various classifications’ ord- ered by boards of equalization sub- cequent to the work of the. assessors, follows: Persons, firms or corpomt:ons own- livery ~ barns and liveries,~ blacksmith, wagon, roommg hguves, -auto pamt and caqwnter shops, - automo-. bile garages, billiard and pool shooting . gallenes, printing' ‘and ‘newspaper, ofl’ices, fnnt, ilor, éye- n. offi “and building - material yards, hotels; restaurants, cafes and- bowling - alleys, ‘confectionery, book, stationery, ten- I '.»cen't, art and ‘novelty stores, boot, perit tion and the state boargi. of equaliza- ; “at i 0 stores, laundries, plambing and galleries, music bakeries, heating, - gleetrical shops, hespitals aid sani- tarfums, undertaking and ‘embalming pariors, electric light plants, fnclud: .ing. ;\ole Tines, gas.. Aplmfis. dneludin, * ‘pipe lines,: wuterwobls systems, ins cludmg pipe Iines, men’s and wom- en’s furnishing stores, clothing stores, hardware and furnitaure stores, gen- eral merchandise stores. ! How Scheme Works Por fear this list would mot in- clude -all businesses and permit every possible payer of personal property assessments to-get away with a luinp assessment, except farmers and other private individuals, a blank space at the end of the list is left, in which “any other business not listed in the foregoing” can lump its assessment, . thus avoiding the 52 -classifications into which the smaller property own- ers must list their property. The new schedule accomplishes its purpose ‘very efficiently. There will appear on the blank the assessor will- take' in the field about: 43 classifications grouped under-a ‘general heading. This heading will read “Stock, furniture and.equip- ment of all kinds of—” and below under this heading willl appear, for instance, “hotels,” and in the blank “under this heading will aprear, for valuation of all stock, furniture and equipment of all kinds belonging to the hotel being assessed. i blanks will be left in which to place the lump valuations of the other businesses mentioned. All lumr, assess-,: z ments will be mmde ‘in these 43 Jblank spaces above described, one blank space for each business. ‘Will ‘Disclose Intrigue - | Now the rest of the sthedule, 52 classifications, is devoted to farmers and ordinery citizens. Wnlike the other part of the sehedule ‘there is no place here where thére can, be en- tered a Jlump ‘walvation for the “stock, furniture and equipment of all kinds of farms” or for the “stock, furniture and eguipment of all kinds of homes.”’ 'On_the contrary these b2 classifications provide for no lump assessments and “each mty = resident and farmer must divide his property into 2 class:ficatlons, answ- ering 52 questions and glvmg 52 asked of and one valuation given by stores, ecorporations and the other businegses benefitted - by the new schedule. : The new schedule was devised by. State Aunditor Carl member of the state board of equal- ization, and approved by that board. . ‘The board was authorized to revamp the schedule by the last legislature, with the result described above, There is a story of political intrigne connected with the steps leading up to the adoption of the schedale, which will . be hmdied ‘in a subse- quent article . ; LEABER IS IMPROVING The Nongartisan Leader, the - offi- cial organ of the ' Nonpartisan League, is growing better with each issue. The paper is improving from a mechanical standpoint, and’ its news ' and ' editorial comments . are vitally needed by the farming or pro- ducing element, for in'ne‘other paper in the state can the farmer secure the news of real interest to him. If ‘the Leader maintains its present high standard it is bound to be a great. . factor. in the upbuilding a.ndz advance- ment of the farming interests of the - : state, and North Dakota’s prosperity ig locked - up in the farmer Pros- the umversi'ty nd, sec faculty, ‘has resigned, Similar - O. Jorgensen, perity to the, farmer means pros-