FARM TAXES IN MASSACHUSETTS 91 



while there are legal methods by means of which improper assessments may 

 be changed, the process of getting an abatement is not easy. 



Accurate valuations are dependent upon careful judgment, broad knowl- 

 edge of local property values, and knowledge of the things which make local 

 property valuable. Assessments will be fair and equitable only to the extent 

 that the local assessors have the necessary knowledge, are honest and pains- 

 taking, and have the courage to apply their knowledge and judgment to all 

 taxpayers alike. 



According to law, "all property, real and personal, situated within the com- 

 monwealth, and all personal property of the inhabitants of the commonwealth 

 wherever situated, unless expressly exempt, shall be subject to taxation." Such 

 property shall be assessed at its "full and fair" cash value as of April 1 each 

 year. In order to assist the assessors, taxpayers may bring in sworn lists of 

 their property and its value, which the assessors must accept as true, except 

 for the valuation. 



In Massachusetts the board of assessors, usually consisting of three men, is 

 much more powerful than similar township boards in states outside of New- 

 England. In practice, very few peojjle turn in lists of their property and the 

 assessors must therefore list and value all property. They also act as a board 

 of review and have power to revise assessments upon complaint of the tax- 

 payer. They perform the same functions as the auditor in other states in levy- 

 ing or assessing the tax, that is, apportioning the total tax to be raised among 

 the various persons and properties assessed. It has been said that the Massa- 

 chusetts boards of assessors "perform the functions and have the powers of 

 assessors, auditors, equalizers, local boards of review, and local boards of 

 appeal." ^ 



With all of these powers combined in the same group of men, it is likely 

 that some injustice will occur. Inequalities in assessments are not easily cor- 

 rected where assessors pass judgment on their own valuations as boards of 

 review or in actions for abatement. Consequently the following inequalities 

 in assessment are likely to occur: 



1. Property may be undervalued throughout the town. 



2. The ratio of assessed to true values may vary greatly between towns. 



3. The ratio of assessed to true values may vary greatly between indi- 



vidual property owners in the same town. 



4. Certain types of property may be relatively over- or undervalued. 

 .5. Some property may not be assessed at all. 



Undervaduation. 



Although the law specifies that property shall be taxed at its full and fair 

 cash value as of April 1, in most towns assessed values are considerably 

 below market value. According to estimates of various tax authorities, prop- 

 erty for the state as a whole is not assessed at more than 75 per cent of its 

 actual value. In the United States Census of 1922 on Wealth, Debt and Taxa- 

 tion, it was estimated that Massachusetts property was assessed at 77.6 per 

 cent of fair value. This figure was based on estimates by state and local 

 authorities. 



According to law, savings banks are not authorized to loan upon the secur- 

 ity of real estate more than 60 per cent of the value of such real estate. 

 However, it is a common occurrence for bank loans to exceed the assessed 



' United States Bureau of the Census. Digest of State laws relating to Taxation and 

 Revenue, 1922, p. 179. 



