The fiscal problem in Missouri

Bibliographic data

Monograph

Identifikator:: 1833271335

URN:: urn:nbn:de:zbw-retromon-230042

Document type:: Monograph

Title:: The fiscal problem in Missouri

Place of publication:: New York

Publisher:: National Industrial Conference Board, Inc.

Year of publication:: 1930

Scope:: xvi, 359 S.

Digitisation:: 2022

Collection:: Economics Books

Usage license:: Get license information via the feedback formular.

Chapter

Document type:: Monograph

Structure type:: Chapter

Title:: Chapter VIII. Public school finance

Collection:: Economics Books

250 THE FISCAL PROBLEM IN MISSOURI shifting of tax burdens; and (5) it represents an untried program of school finance in Missouri. The minimum program implies a high degree of uniformity in assessed valuations throughout the state. With reference to this phase of the problem, the Educational Survey Com- mission states: “It is the opinion of the Educational Survey Commission that the present assessment machinery can sup- ply the State Superintendent of Public Schools with a fairly accurate statement of the taxable wealth in each county of the state and with a somewhat less accurate estimate of the wealth of each township.”? That such estimates are suf- ficiently accurate for the purpose of the plan of school finance seems to be largely in the nature of an assumption. The assessment and equalization procedure and the results ob- tained are hardly satisfactory, and this is especially true since it is planned to use a uniform rate on assessed valuation as a basis for the financial plan. "The school investigators ap- parently relied on the work of the State Tax Commission in making the statement quoted. The work of the State Tax Commission is to be commended, but the fact remains that it lacks both the staff and the funds necessary to carry on its work. For example, in a report of the State Survey Commis- sion, we are informed that “The assessors are as a rule not very competent to assess any class of property and they know nothing about values of special classes, such as large struc- tures, factories, merchants stocks, etc.”? The same report states: “The Tax Commission is supposed to have authority to supervise local assessing. As a matter of fact it is a small organization (three members appointed by the Governor, two field agents, a secretary and five clerks) which has a wide function exclusive of any actual supervision of indi- vidual assessments. Itis a physical impossibility for such an organization to supervise assessing. Aside from lack of staff to direct assessing operations, it lacks any authority to select or remove assessors. What it can do, it attempts, namely, to help to clarify the very complicated tax law and to make the assessors’ duties known.” The authority of the State Board ! A Preliminary Report of the Survey of the Public Schools of Missouri, p. 163. 2 The Taxation System of Missouri, p. 40. ! The Taxation System of Missouri, p. 40.

Access restriction

Copyright

fullscreen: The fiscal problem in Missouri

Monograph

Chapter

Table of contents

Download

Monograph

Chapter

This page

Image fragment

Citation links

Citation recommendation