board levies the county, township, city, school district, precinct, and village taxes. Not only is this equalization made in each county, but the governor, auditor, and treasurer form a board to adjust the values in the BOARD State as a whole. These officers meet STATE OF EQUAL TION STATE IZA- every year as a board of equalization, on the third Monday of July. They examine the various county assessments, and if it appears to them that the valuation has not been made with reasonable uniformity in different counties, they adjust matters by varying the rate of taxation, instead of changing the values of property. This state board of equalization, having before it the valuation of taxable property in the State, proceeds to find the rate for the several amounts to be raised. There is the general state FUNDS tax, the sinking fund tax, and the school tax. Each of these or any other special fund to be raised, is divided by the whole valuation to find the rate. After the state and county boards have made all adjustments and the rate has been fixed, each county clerk makes out another list of the amounts due from every piece of taxable property, and delivers the list to the county treasurer, formally commanding him to collect them. This occurs "on or before the first day of October". The law pro COLLEC- vides, however, that "no demand for taxes shall be necessary, but it shall be the duty of every person subject to taxation under the laws of the State to attend at the treasurer's office at the county seat and pay his taxes". In cities, the municipal taxes are paid into the city treasury; state funds are paid into the county treasury; all the county and state taxes are added and the result is called the "consolidated tax". IDATED It even contains local levies for school purposes. Thus all the money for taxes, except in cities, comes into the county treasury, from which it is sent either to the state treasury or to the district for which it was collected.' CONSOL TAX Besides these general taxes, there are other special assessments. Every male inhabitant of each road district between twenty-one and fifty years of age, is subject to pay a labor tax of three dollars, which may be paid in cash or by work. It is called more commonly a A village or city tax of the same kind. SPE- TAXES poll tax. 1 Example of taxes in Nebraska for one year. A resident of Bennet has state, county, and village assessments. A resident of Lincoln has state, county, and city taxes. In cities, espe takes the place of this road tax. cially, the number of different taxes multiply rapidly. Inhabitants of particular districts may be assessed for building and repairing sidewalks, for sanitary purposes, or for sprinkling the streets. LI Other charges are made under the name CENSES of licenses. These are usually levied to regulate some class of business, such as the sale of liquors. They are imposed not to raise money, primarily, but to regulate the sale of intoxicating drinks. So with the dog tax in cities. It is not to raise money, but to make owners responsible for the damage dogs may do. A tax upon peddlers appears to be levied, not so much for regulating the business, or for raising money, as to insure the fact that the peddler shall pay a tax somewhere in the State. All people who enjoy any of the protection and benefits of the State government, should aid in defraying its expenses. There is always an effort on the part of the person whose property is being assessed, to have the value of his property placed as low as possible. The assessors, in turn, have generally estimated the value very low, and the result is that value of taxable property in the State has been much less than it should, and the rate of taxation much higher. Nothing at all is gained by such low estimates, and a great deal is lost, for capital is prevented from coming into the State on account of the high rate. When a railroad crosses a district, the property RAIL TAXES of the railroad is taxed at the same rate as the property of every farmer in the district. The taxation of a railroad is reckoned in this way: The value of all the property of the railroad in the State, its "rolling stock", depots, freight houses, shops, rails, and ties, repair outfits, etc., is ROAD lumped together as the valuation of the railroad. This is divided by the whole number of miles of the railroad, which gives the valuation of each mile. There was, in 1896, 24.96 miles of B. & M. railroad in Clay County. The assessed valuation per mile was $10,500, which made $261,660, the basis of the taxation of that road in Clay County. In a school district across which the B. & M. runs, in Clay County, there may be five miles of the railroad. If so, the valuation of the railroad in that district would be $52,500, and on this amount the tax which that school district voted at its annual meeting in 1896, is levied. It has been said that the rate of the state levy varies in different counties. Clay County, in 1896, it was 73 mills. That railroad had to pay 73 mills on each dollar of its assessed valuation, $261,660, as its state taxes levied in Clay county. It also had to pay the county levy besides this, and the tax for each school district that was voted at each school meeting. For In 1895, the entire valuation of the property in Nebraska was $171,468,207.48, and the amount to be raised for state purposes was $1,196,276.83. The valuation of the property in Douglas county was $22,500,251.81, and on this amount the treasurer of that county was instructed to collect a state levy of 7 mills. REVIEW. What kinds of property are taxed? What is meant by valuation? What is the work of the assessors. What is a board of equalization for? Is there more than one? What special board regulates the rates for state taxes? When does the process of taxation begin? When is the list of taxes ready to turn over to the county treasurer? How are taxes collected? What is meant by consolidated taxes? Name some of the special taxes? What good or harm can come from valuing property very low? If the valuation of the Omaha depot and grounds of a certain railroad is $400,000, does Douglas County get taxes on that valuation? Problem: Valuation of property in a school district $18,000.00: money to be raised for the school building $510.00. Find the rate of the levy. Should school licenses be used for educational purposes? ELECT- III-ELECTIONS.1 The American people pride themselves upon the right to vote, for it is the power by which they govern themselves. The system by which the voters, or electors, of the State exercise this right in choosing their officers should be thoroughly understood by every citizen. first inquiry is, "Who are these electors?" as they are called in the statutes. The constitution fully answers this, and students may refer to that document.2 The legislature has completed the 1 Consol. Statutes, 1891, §§ 1582-1778, 2 Article VII. The |