LAND UTILIZATION IN NEW HAMPSHIRE 49 



merits have been made by other qualified observers, and this fact has been 

 used publicly as an argument against the establishment of a state income 

 tax in New Hampshire. 



Tax differentials also exist among towns, and in many cases have been 

 publicized to attract new residents. Welcome signs on the highways 

 entering many New Hampshire communities emphasize low local tax 

 rates. In some cases these rates are achieved at the expense of higher 

 assessed valuations; thus the taxpayer's position is only partially indicated. 



Policy with respect to local assessment varies throughout the state. 

 Certain assessors have stated a policy of favoring low tax rates and higher 

 assessments, the latter "to increase the value of real estate in the minds of 

 prospective purchasers". In some towns, summer properties are under- 

 assessed, because "they demand few services" or "do not yield any reve- 

 nue to their owners". In other towns such properties are over-assessed, 

 because they are "luxuries owned by wealthy people who can afford to 

 pay" or because they are "a painless source of revenue". In some instances 

 assessed valuations are increased arbitrarily when properties pass into 

 summer home use, on the theory that "land is more valuable for summer 

 home use than for farm, forestry, or residential uses". These many in- 

 dividual theories, although based on some sort of "local logic", are not 

 in keeping with the assessment laws and result in discrimination and dis- 

 satisfaction among towns and among groups of property owners. 



Divergent State and local fiscal policies obtain benefits for some 

 political units, but only at the expense of others. The social desirability 

 of such policies is open to question. Some differences in assessed valua- 

 tion appear inevitable under a system of local administration, no matter 

 how conscientious the officials may be. The minimizing of such differ- 

 ences is a desirable objective of State supervision. Under the existing 

 system, however, intensification of present programs of assessor training 

 and assessment review seems necessary to mold the personal theories of 

 hundreds of local assessors into some sort of consistent policy. The rec- 

 ommendation of the National Tax Association that assessment districts 

 be enlarged and employ full-time trained assessors is an alternative method 

 for improving assessment practice. 



One of the objectives of State policy has been the equalization of the 

 tax burden among towns and the elimination of inequalities caused by 

 fortuitous circumstances or the carrying out of other public policies. As 

 was illustrated in the case of Francestown and Tuftonboro (page 44), 

 however, the present system of allocating State highway aids among 

 towns has not fulfilled this objective: The effects upon recreational 

 development and the economic lives of communities have been quite 

 different. Towns crossed by State highways have realized a double ad- 

 vantage of better highways and reduced maintenance expenditures, rel- 

 ative to other towns,. Revision of State equalization formulae to permit 

 greater aid to poor towns with large mileages of town roads would im- 

 prove this situation. 17 In effectuating such policy, constant vigilance 

 would be necessary to avoid the payment of rewards for inefficiency in 

 local administration. 



17 The problems and recommendations suggested here are presented in more detail in Bulletin 339 

 of the N. H. Agri. Exp. Sta., New Hampshire Rural Towns' Comparative Road Burdens and 

 Road Services, by W. R. Parks and J. C. Holmes, June, 1942. 



