LOGGED-OFF LANDS. 



37 



Washington, cut-over lands, valuable for the production of timber 

 alone, are assessed at a value of from $1 to $5 an acre, at a combined 

 countj^ and State rate of from 15 to 30 mills on the dollar. Assessors 

 may attempt to make a more reasonable adjustment, but are often pre- 

 vented from doing so by the demand of the State for a revenue from 

 these lands far out of proportion to that required from other property. 

 The State takes no account of the annual decrease of standing timber 

 from cutting, and continues to levy the same tax, although it must be 

 borne b}^ less valuable land each year. In Chehalis County alone 

 10,000 acres are annually cut over, yet the tax rate is unchanged. 

 An attempt was made to get logged-off lands placed in a separate 

 lightly taxed class, and to have the burden divided among other classes 

 of property, but it failed. 



Calculating logged-off land as worth $1 an acre, with the assess- 

 ment at $3 an acre, and the rate at 2 cents, the cost of holding a 

 quarter section of such land for fifty 3^ ears would be $1,742, or $10.90 

 an acre. It is thus evident that the conmiunity offers little encourage- 

 ment to the timber grower. Under such conditions few men will hold 

 logged-off land. The effect of the system is to defeat its own end. 

 The property reverts to the State for delinquent taxes and, still con- 

 sidered worthless and wholly unprotected, it is burned and reburned 

 until it becomes a desert. The gain to the communit}' would be much 

 greater were the land assessed at 50 cents an acre and the tax collected. 

 Statements furnished by the assessors of several timbered counties in 

 Washington show the amount of cut-over land which has been abandoned 

 to be as follows: 



Table 12. — Amount of logged-off I'lnds ahandoncd. 



Assessed 



value 



of standing 



timber 



per acre. 



value of 

 logged-off 



land 

 per acre. 



I Combined 

 State, county 

 and special 

 tax rate 

 I per acre. 



land aban- 

 doned. 



Chehalis 



Clallam: 



Hemlock 



other species. 



Clarke 



Jefferson 



King 



Pacific 



Pierce 



Skagit 



Whatcom 



J)oUars. 

 S.OO- 9.00 



0. 00-10. 00 

 3. OO-IO. 00 

 3.00-10.00 

 2. 50- 5. 00 

 4. 00- 6. 00 

 3.00-10.00 

 4.00-10.00 



IMkw. 

 2.00 



1.00 



2. .50- 5. 00 

 1.00 

 2.50 

 1.25 



2. 00- 2. 25 

 (^) 



2. 00-10. 00 



MilU. 



28 

 20 

 22-30 

 20-30 

 18 

 16 



" None nominally abandoned. Much delinquent. 



t" None. 



« None at present. Indications that large amount will be abandoned. 



* Information wanting. 



e Verv little. 



