204 
TAXATION AND REVENUE SYSTEMS—RHODE ISLAND. 
amount and in same manner; real estate used exclusively for 
military purposes, owned by chartered or incorporated organ 
izations approved by the adjutant general, composed of mem 
bers of the national guard, naval militia, or independent 
chartered military organizations; buildings and personal estate 
of any incorporated public charity institution; 'property spe 
cially exempt by charter unless exemption waived in whole or 
in part; the real estate and personal property of any incorpo 
rated volunteer fire engine company in actual service. 
b. Assessment.—The state board of tax commission 
ers has general charge and control over the taxation of 
the corporate excess of manufacturing, mercantile, and 
miscellaneous corporations; over the taxation of pub 
lic service corporations; and over the tax on the les 
sees of oyster grounds. These several taxes are paid 
directly into the state treasury. The board is also 
charged with conferring with and advising local as 
sessors so as to produce uniformity in assessment 
throughout the state. The board prepares uniform 
assessment blanks for the cities and towns, and the 
local officials are required to make from the records 
such annual reports to the board as it may require. 
In general, all real and tangible personal property 
is assessed by the town or the city assessors in the 
towns or cities in which it is located and all other per 
sonal property in the town in which the owner resides. 
Intangible personal property under the immediate 
control of a guardian takes its situs at the residence 
of the ward; that under the control of executors, ad 
ministrators, or trustees at the residence of the per 
son to whom the income is to be paid. But if such 
ward or other person live outside the state, then such 
property takes its situs at the residence of the guar 
dian, executors, administrators, or trustees. 
Intangible personal property of a copartnership is 
taxed to the copartnership in the towm in which it 
carries on its business. If the partners have places 
of business in two or more towns, the intangible prop 
erty is equitably apportioned between the several towns 
in proportion to the tangible personal property in 
each town in which said business is carried on, any de 
duction for debts due from the partnership being made 
in each town in the ratio of the tax in such town. 
No shareholder is liable to taxation on shares held 
in any corporation within or without the state, or in 
any banking association, when the corporation in its 
corporate capacity is taxed for an amount equal to 
the value of its property and equal to the market value 
of its shares; in case such corporation or association 
is taxed less than said amount, such shareholder is 
taxed only for the difference between the market value 
of each share held and the proportionate amount per 
share at which the corporation was last taxed. 
Actual indebtedness may be deducted from personal 
property liable to taxation. 
Residents are not assessed on property taxed in 
another state. 
The time of assessment is fixed by each of the 38 
towns and cities independently, so that, unless by 
chance, the date would not be the same in any two 
jurisdictions. 
All property liable to taxation is to be assessed at 
its full and fair cash value by the assessors. Every 
person, corporation, or association is required to de 
liver to the assessor a sworn list of the property 
owned or under his control, specifying the value, which 
value is not, however, binding upon the assessor. 
Whoever neglects to bring in a sworn list has no 
remedy if overassessed. 
All property is required to be listed in separate 
columns by the assessors, as land, buildings, and other 
improvements, tangible personal property, and in 
tangible personal property, and distinguishing those 
who give in an account from those who do not, and 
the tax is apportioned accordingly. 
Real estate liable to taxation and which has been 
omitted from assessment or erroneously or illegally 
assessed in any year may be reassessed during any 
of the following six years to the person or persons 
who were the owner or owners or trustee or trustees 
at the time of such omission or erroneous or illegal 
assessment. 
The shares of all state banks or trust companies, 
other than savings banks and of national banks, are 
assessed to the owners by the board of tax commis 
sioners, but the tax thereon is paid by the bank as 
agent of the shareholders. The bank thereupon has 
a lien on the shares. The statutes provide that the 
assessment of the bank and trust company shares is 
to be made by April 1 of each year. 
Oysters in beds leased from the state are declared 
by statute to be the personal property of the lessee 
and are assessed by the state board of commissioners 
at the rental value. 
c. Equalization.—There is no provision for equali 
zation, strictly so called, but any person aggrieved by 
assessment may petition the supreme court for relief. 
This petition, however, does not stay proceedings for 
collecting the taxes. 
2. Rate— 
There is a fixed rate of 9 cents on each $100 of the 
ratable property of the several towns and cities, which 
is to be assessed annually, collected, and paid by them 
to the state treasurer. 
Money on liand, money at interest or on deposit, other than 
that which is taxable to a bank, savings bank, or trust com 
pany, and the fair cash value of debts, whether or not secured 
by mortgage or pledge, due to the person, copartnership, or 
corporation to be taxed (all of the foregoing are included to 
such an amount as the value of such money and such debts 
shall exceed the amount such persou, copartnership, or corpo 
ration is indebted to others, including in such indebtedness to 
others any debts secured by a mortgage or pledge given by