TAX ADMINISTRATION

169

is held at the state capital, and township assessors meet with
a representative of the Commission at the county seats.
Some progress has been made toward improving conditions,
but it seems certain that more effective supervision is needed.
In order that the variations between counties might be
studied, data concerning real estate transfers were obtained
for certain years, which indicate the ratios of assessed valuation
 to sales value. While it is true that a particular property
 is not transferred sufficiently often for the selling price to
constitute an absolute standard of assessment, it is also true
that when a property is transferred under conditions that
are not unusual its sales price can be used as a guide in determining
 the valuation of the property in question as well
as that of adjoining properties of a similar kind. If a sufficient
 number of properties are transferred, the ratio of
assessed valuation to sales value for a county or a city, as
computed from the assessed valuation and sales value totals,
should serve as definite indication that property is or is not
assessed at its true value. Manufacturing plants constitute
an exception. When a manufacturing plant is sold or
merged with another concern, it is usually either a very successful
 company or a rather unsuccessful one. In the one
case, the sales value might be very high as compared with
the assessed value, and in the other, very low. Accordingly
no manufacturing properties are included in the data here
presented.
The data are in the nature of statistical samples, and this
limitation is taken into account in interpreting the figures.
For example, it is not contended that real estate in Missouri
for taxes of 1929 was assessed on the average of 55%, of true
value. It is merely pointed out that a large number of real
estate transfers showed an indicated ratio of 559, of true
value. This difference is important, for when the sample
represents a relatively small proportion of the total number
of properties there is no warrant for drawing broad conclusions.

Table 49 shows the results of a real estate study made by
the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Company in
seven Missouri counties in 1922. The combined data for the
seven counties show a ratio of assessed valuation to sales