54 STATION BULLETIN 346 



estate of entire towns when it seemed clear that the property was not 

 fairly assessed. The purpose is to bring about "full value" assess- 

 ments and thereby equalize the state and county tax burden among 

 the towns. The commission does not compute a correction factor 

 for adjusting local valuations to full value. The county commission- 

 ers also have equalization powers. 



The state tax commission reports that at the time of its creation 

 in 1911 selectmen intentionally assessed real estate property at an 

 amount far below its actual market value. The purpose was to re- 

 duce the amount of direct state tax apportioned to each town in pro- 

 portion to its e([ualized valuation in relation to the total equalized 

 valuation of the state. Much of the increase in town inventories dur- 

 ing the years immediately following 1911 was undoubtedly due to 

 more equitable assessments, and these have resulted largely from 

 the activities of the state tax commission. The commission reports 

 that it has assessed whole towns at the rate of 10 per year from 1930 

 to 1935, and in some previous years they exceeded this figure. In 

 one instance the commission claims to have lowered a town tax rate 

 from $4.12 to $2.53 as a result of raising the assessment values. 



It is not a part of this project to measure accurately the amount of 

 error in appraisals of individual estates, or the differences in assess- 

 ment levels among tow^is. However, as a matter of interest and in 

 order to become acquainted with the assessment problems in general, 

 one or more officials in each town were questioned in regard to this 

 matter. Approximately half of these towns have been reassessed by 

 the commission since 1911 in entirety or in part. Three of these re- 

 assessments were for woodland only. In many instances the select- 

 men stated that the commission changed the assessment on many in- 

 dividual estates, but that the total valuation was changed only slight- 



Officials were asked at what percent of full value they considered 

 the real estate assessed. Their response usually indicated that they 

 had full knowledge of statutory requirements and understood the 

 effect of appraisal on tax rates. Individual estimates ranged from 50 

 to 110 percent in different towns, and ranged from 60 to 100 percent 

 among officials within a given town. When several officials were 

 questioned collectively, usually the board of selectmen, the estimate 

 agreed on was in every instance 75 percent or more of full value. On 

 the basis of the estimate obtained, nearly one-half of the rural towns 

 are assessing real estate at less than full value, and the appraisals in 

 one out of every six towms are less than 75 percent of full value. 

 Only one out of three boards of selectmen attempt to assess at exact- 

 ly full value. In two instances it was reported that real estate was 

 assessed at more than full value in order to retain a low tax rate as an 

 encouragement to prospective residents. It was quite commonly ad- 

 mitted that woodlands are generally assessed at more nearly their 

 true value than are other types of real estate. 



The lack of uniformity of assessments within the town is un- 

 doubtedly a more serious ])roblem than equalization of assessments 

 among the towns. In 1939 the state direct tax was discontinued, thus 



