Thuraday, September 16, 1984

gHE TRIBUNE, WILLIAMS LAKE, B.C.

Page 8

J.W.N. POZER, p.s.c. RCP.

DOCTOR OF SURGICAL CHIROPODY
FOOT SPECIALIST
of Kamloops
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WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 22

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Assessment Equalization Act
Discussed At Kamloops Meeting

KAMLOOPS — That the

Assessment Equalization Act

(1953) might be an invasion of local government — but only
a small invasion — was the opinion expressed last week by
deputy minister of municipal affairs J. E. Brown, speaking to
the fifth annual convention of the B.C. Assessors Association.

Mr. Brown said the advent of the

Equalization Act and its

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im ation and translation into
a working scheme had already had
considerable impact on the-conduct
of the assessors’ work.

“T am neither competent nor am.I
authorized to discuss the application
of this particular piece of legislation.
However I think I should take this
occasion to point out that such a
move has been foreshadowed for
many years, running back to the
Harper report of 1933. Further, if
the provincial government is to make
financial contibutions to the muni-
cipalities of the province on any
equitable basis, uniformity of assess-
ments in some form or other is a
must.

“] understand there is a feeling in
some quarters that the method adopt-
ed constitutes an invasion of local
autonomy. If it an invasion it is
certainly very limited and should in
no way impair the normal operations
of local government. After all,

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sessing is a sort of judicial function
through the exercise of which the
cost of carrying out local government
is apportioned among the ratepay-
ers.”

PROPERTY TAX

On the subject of property taxes
Mr. Brown said that this tax had sui-
fered considerably at the hands of
the critics. It was not the best single
tax, he said, but in conjunction with
other taxes, it was not nearly so in-
eqitable or regressive as some per-
sons tried to make out.

He told the assessors: “It could
well be that this cloud may have ad-
versely affected your morale and that
you have felt inferio to an assessor
of income tax, fo example. I should
like.to point out to you that in this
instance the income concept is often
no more precise than the concept of
value and that as many arbitrary de-
cisions are made in applying the in-
come tax, as you must make in the
property tax field.

“he property tax,” continued the
deputy minister, “had an old and
very understandable origin. Persons
were expected to contribute in pro-
portion to their property and wealth
and very rough and crude apportion-
ments were made, in the same way
as was being done at the present
time, in many cases.

He continued: “With increasing
levels of taxation however, mucli
greater accuracy must be applied if
gross inequity is to be avoided. Fail-
ure to reassess for periods as long as
20 years just does not represent 2
proper adminstration of any tax, be
jt property, sales or income.”

He said he did not blame assessors
for this state of affairs, as they were
just as likely victims of generally
faulty attitude toward and about the
property tax.

\We have been taking a negative
attitude toward the property tax,
with the result that in its application
and administration we have fallen

Var bellind the standard of the prac-

tices employed for the others. We
have made little or no effort to make
the tax progessive. A survey of as-
sessed values and practices carried
out under my direction a few years
ago showed tha tin a number of mu-
nicialities smaller houses were as-
sessed relatively more than larger
houses of the same type and style,”
he said.

SATISFIED RURAL
ASSESSMENT SOU:

Representing the Premier, the
Hon. W. A. C. Bennett, who is also
minister of finance. K: E. B. Wild-
man, assessment ‘commissioner for
the province said: ‘I have indicated
to the minister the interest being
taken by all in the new Assessment
Bqualization Act and all that the act
involves. He has asked me to convey
to you on behalf of the govenment
his best thanks for your co-operation
in this matter throughout the prov-
ince, in which your association is so
keenly interested.”

A span of four years was jumped
by M. Wildman when he spoke at the
afternoon session of the Equaliza-

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Gnce Sentenced to Die,
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—Centra) Press Canadian

National defence headquarters
in Ottawa have confirmed report
that Kurt Meyer, seen above,
German major-general who was
convicted in 1945 of having been
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regiment—who was sentenced to

Special Services At
St. Peter’s Church

A special service will be held in
Saint Peter’s Church on Sunday,
September 19th, at 11:00 a.m.

This service will be conducted by
the Rey. B. H. Barrett, B.A., who has
recently returned from the Church
Convention in the U.S.A.

With Mr. Barrett are Mr. Neil
Robinson and two other members of
the A.Y.P.A

A hearty invitation is extended to
all and especially to members of the
ACY-P-A.s

Sunday September 26— the Re-
opening of Sunday School at 11 a.m.

Geo. J. Fielder, Vicar.

Afternoon tea was served Tuesday
at the home of Mrs. 0. Kerley to in-
troduce Mrs. T. B. Beames. wife of
the new high school principal, to her
new neighbors. Those present were
Mrs. J. Stitt, Mrs. P. Hosey, Mrs. H.
Atwood and Mrs. R. Friesen.

be shot, but his punishment was
reduced first to life imprison-
ment and then to 14 years—was
released from the British prison

he had served nine years and
four months and will be eligible
for freedom by reason of time
oif for good behavior.

tion Act. He said: “You have re-
assessed your areas and all muni-
cipal and rural areas have attained
sound valuation. You see I am look-
ing ahead for this has taken progres-
sively four yeas. So we come to the
compilation of the 1959 assessment
roll. cs

Our assessment sales study has
been keeping step, and sufficient
data in all assessing areas has been
gathered to form economic trends in
each assessing area. Having gained
standardization, these ratios can be
applied.”

He said that assessments from
then on would be closely related to
the economic trend of ‘any year and
adjusted if necessary. In this con-
nection, re-assessments should be 2
continuous cycle with the additional
new improvements.

He went on to say that there might
be some thought that there had been
discrimination against “some ~ loca:
areas.

“Tt might appear a local discrimin-

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ation, but we are con with the

province as a whole, and interpreta-
tions made for application are done
so with a view to the betterment of
the majority, and not the minorit

Turning to the assessment of ma-
chinery and equipment, Mr. Wild-
man said he admitted that to most
assessors the procedure was new.
The routine procedure of assessing
did not appear to apply, as there were
no standards.

“Phere is no manual to refer to,
values are unknown, and the ques-
tions arise; where do they come from
and how do you arrive at the costs?”
he said.

In the ealy part of the year there
would be questions of this nature
still in the minds of assessors but
familiarity would iron out all prob-
lems of this kind if it had not already
done so, declared Mr. Wildman.

“In 1955 it is expected, and it will

be insisted upon, that-all areas will
commence a reassessment progam.
on base costs of 60 per cent of 1953,
to be completed as soon as possible
with the use of each area’s permanent
assessment staff, and in any case no
area shall take more than four con-
tinuous full working years to com-
plete this assessment.”
In answer to a question in the
quesion period after his address, Mr.
Wildman said that all machinery in
use would be liable to be assessed
under the act if it was of a total
value of $1000.

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Williams Lake, B.C.

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