supervision over assessors, town, city and village boards of review or equalization, and the determination and assessment of taxable property in the several towns, cities and villages by the county board of supervisors to the end that all taxable property in the state shall be placed on the assessment rolls at the true cash value, equalized between persons, companies and corporations in assessment districts and between municipalities in counties so that equality of taxation shall be secured according to the provisions of law. III. To confer with, advise and direct assessors, boards of review and county boards of supervisors as to their duties under the statutes of the state, and to direct that proceedings, actions or prosecutions be instituted to enforce the laws relating to the penalties, liabilities and punishment of public officers, persons and officers or agents of corporations for failure or neglect to comply with the provisions of the statutes governing the return, assessment and taxation of property, to cause complaints to be made against assessors or other taxing officers to the proper circuit judge for their removal from office for official misconduct or neglect of duty. In the execution of these powers and duties the said commissioner may call upon district attorneys who shall assist in the commencement and prosecutions of actions and proceedings for penalties, for forfeitures, removals and punishment for violation of the laws of the state in respect to the assessments and taxation of the property. IV. The commissioner shall have power to require town, city and village officers to report information as to the assessment of property, collection of taxes, the expenditure of public funds for all purposes and any other information which said commissioner may request. V. To require individuals, partnerships, companies, associations and corporations to furnish information concerning their capital, funded debt, value of property, earnings, taxes and all other facts called for so that the commissioner may ascertain the relative burdens borne by all kinds of property in the state. VI. To summon witnesses to appear and testify on the subject of the value of property, earnings, taxes, or upon any matter deemed material to the investigation of the system of taxation and the expenditure of public funds for state, county and local purposes. VII. The commissioner and each of his assistants may administer the oath to witnesses. In case any witness shall fail to obey the summons to appear, or refuse to testify such failures or refusal shall be reported to the attorney general who shall thereupon institute proceedings in the proper circuit court to compel obedience or to punish a witness for any neglect or refusal. Any person who shall testify falsely shall be guilty of, and punished for perjury. In the discretion of the commis

sioner, officers who serve summons and witnesses attending shall receive like compensation as officers and witnesses in the circuit court. VIII. To visit the counties in the state, unless prevented by other necessary official duties, for the investigation of the methods adopted by local assessors, boards of review and county boards of supervisors in the assessment, equalization and taxation of real and personal property; to carefully examine into all cases where evasion of proper taxation is alleged, and ascertain wherein existing laws are defective or are improperly or negligently administered; to investigate the taxation systems or [of] other states and countries, and they shall formulate and recommend such legislation as may be found necessary to prevent the evasion of just and equal taxation and for the improvement of the system of taxation in the state. IX. To consult and confer with the governor of the state upon the subjects of taxation, the administration of the laws in relation thereto, the progress of the work, and to furnish the governor from time to time such assistance or information as he may require. X. To transmit to the governor of the state at least thirty days before the meeting of the legislature the report of the commissioner showing all the taxable property in the state and the value of the same in tabulated form with the recommendations for improvement in the system of taxation in the state and such measures as may be formulated for the consideration of the legislature. XI. To transmit copies of the report showing all the taxable property in the state and the value of the same in tabulated form with recommendations to each member of the legislature thirty days before the meeting of the legislature. XII. To perform such further duties as may be imposed on such commissioner by law.

SEC. 2. Section 9 of chapter 206 of the laws of 1899 is hereby amended to read as follows: Section 9. The salaries of the commissioner, his assistants and clerks, their necessary traveling expenses and all other disbursements of his office, shall be paid out of the state treasury as the salaries and expenses of other state officers are paid and a sum sufficient to carry out the provisions of this act is hereby appropriated, provided the salaries of clerks, traveling expenses and other disbursements shall not exceed the sum of ten thousand dollars in any one year.

CHAPTER I.

ADMINISTRATIVE WORK OF TAX COMMISSION.

The legislature in 1901 also enacted chapter 379 providing additional penalties and punishments for violations of the assessment laws by assessing officers and property owners and for neglect of duty by assessing officers.

It also passed chapter 330 providing for the removal of assessing officers for violations of the assessment laws or for neglect of official duty.

To further provide for the better enforcement of the assessment laws chapter 445, Laws of 1901, created the office of county supervisor of assessment, an entirely new official, and a new experiment in assessment legislation. Under this act each county board (except that of Buffalo County) at its annual session of 1901 elected a supervisor of assessment to serve for three years from January 1, 1902. Such official has general supervision of the work of the assessment in his county and acts in turn under the supervision and direction of the state tax commission. Being restricted to the county he is enabled to supervise the work of assessors and boards of review more in detail than is practicable to a state board. In Racine County the supervisor elected by the county board was found by the circuit court to have been ineligible to the office for the reason that he had not been a "householder" of the county for the period of time preceding his election, required by the act. With the exception of Buffalo and Racine Counties the supervisors elected, acted as such throughout the assessment season of 1902.

All the legislation on the subject of assessment and taxation passed by the sessions of 1899 and 1901 has one purpose in view, to-wit: To secure the assessment of all taxable property in the state at its full cash value. The tax commission has re

ceived very valuable assistance from the supervisors in that respect. A much greater degree of uniformity of assessments than heretofore prevailing has been secured through their efforts and personal presence with assessors and supervision of their work.

In accordance with law the tax commission called a meeting of the county supervisors of assessment at the capitol on February 18, 1902, for a conference on the subject of taxation, the administration of the laws and for the instruction of such officers in their duties. The meeting continued through two days, all the supervisors attending, and a report of the proceedings has heretofore been printed in pamphlet form.

The law further provides that the county supervisor of assessment "shall annually on or before the last Tuesday of April call a meeting of all the assessors of the county for conference and instruction relative to the duties of such officers in the valuation and assessment of all kinds and classes of property subject to taxation under the laws of the state." Such meetings were held in all the counties and in several instances a member of this commission was in attendance. We believe a much fuller compliance with the assessment laws than heretofore prevailing has followed these conferences. As this is a new experiment in the work of assessment, and the county supervisors were obliged to enter a new field without precedent to guide them it is not surprising that difficulties should be encountered, and that in some instances there should arise a certain amount of friction as to the respective duties of the supervisor and assessors and as to whether the former can, under the law direct the latter in the matter of particular valuations. While the law creating the office gives to the supervisor "full and complete supervision and direction of the work of the assessors," it in no manner changes the duties of the assessor or relieves him from the responsibility of exercising his individual judgment. The power is vested in the supervisor to make independent assessments and to examine property owners and witnesses under oath and thus enables him to present to the board of review and county board the facts where the assessor willfully disregards the law, or to take steps for his removal. We are not advised

that any supervisor has availed himself of the latter remedy. We are, however, advised of at least one instance where the property of a manufacturing concern was, after careful personal examination, assessed by the supervisor at a much higher figure than by the assessor, and upon the report of the supervisor to the county board, such increase of valuation was added to the valuation of the assessment district. The result of such action is to impose upon the entire assessment district the tax which in justice should be borne by the individual owner. It becomes a penalty on all the taxpayers of the district (except the favored individual) for non-performance of duty by the officer. This brings the responsibility for the assessor's misconduct directly home to the electorate to which he owes his official existence.

On the whole, however, assessors have shown a commendable desire to comply with the law and accept the assistance of the supervisor. This change in the attitude of assessors who had `previously been in the habit of valuing property at a very low percentage of true value demonstrates that the object of the assessor has been to protect his town or assessment district against lower assessments in neighboring districts. When assured that the law will be followed elsewhere he prefers the more direct and simple method of complying with it to the more complicated one of first ascertaining the true value and then reducing his assessments to a certain percentage of such value. Assessments and taxation have recently received more attention throughout the state than ever before and the public conscience has to some extent been quickened to a better observance of the law and the better understanding of the fact that equality of taxation between individuals, districts and counties can best be attained through a strict enforcement of the law to assess all taxable property at full cash value. When this rule is departed from the bars are thrown down and each assessor is tempted to outbid his neighbor by adopting the lowest possible ratio of true value.

The difficult and perplexing work of the supervisor of assessment will, it is confidently believed, with experience further justify the creation of the office. Elsewhere in this report will be found statistics showing the increase over former years of intangible property assessed in 1902 which must be largely credited to their diligence.