The Dominion. MONDAY, APRIL 26, 1909. VALUATION AND TAXATION.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 491, 26 April 1909, Page 4

The Dominion. MONDAY, APRIL 26, 1909. VALUATION AND TAXATION.

; .The . strong resentment felt against the rcmankable increase in the State's valuation of land, with its consequent increase of taxation* is finding vent in: Various directions. Eeceiitly we qubted the pro-, test of the Auckland Farmers', Union, now we have the objection raised by 'the Feildinj; Bproilgh Council, which intends' to go -thb length of' carrying the matter to tke AesessiiieiltCbUrt, and there' are: scores bf individual complaints all over the country. One of these latter is ventilated in a recent issue of the Gisborne TiMks-, aiid thd fabts afad figures ate; Most iiistrUctiVo; Accotdiiig to the paper named, Me. P. Weight, a very old settler, pilrchased about, eight yeiirs ago the interest of'.'.-another settler invSOOO itcres of land in the Motu district, and subseqtiehlly he seeiired thS' freehold from the Crown. The property & a backblocks Section, aiid the owner has hiid td endure the usual privations and discomforts while he impf-oved and developed his holding, Three years ago it wa.S' val tied by the Government at £3900. Last month this valuation was raised to £10,510—the, valuation has ■ practically been trebled in three years: If the produetivo capacity had advanced in the mealitimo, comments our contemporary, there would he no caliso for bomplainij for, by rfeason of increased revenue, the farmer would be able to pay tlie ildditiotial rates without trouble, tnit nothing of the kind - has happened. ! Except that some additional land has been cleared and made, available for feeding Stock; its earhing power has not boon in-, crossed. 'Indeed,.as.a set-off-against aiiy increased acreage for sheep grazing must be mentioned tho very great reduction in the price of wool and muttdii. Three yoars ago Peter Wright could look confidently for hincpen.co. or tcnpbnce per lb. for his bales of wool;-to-day ho counts himself lucky if li© can get siipfell'ce. Three years ago ho had a fairly ready sale for bdth wethers arid owes; to-day they art) a diug in tlie market, which will take liothirig but fat- lambs, and these lie cannot get to a market because the. Government liiis failed to supply hint with the iiioans of transport. It still costs him £8 to £9 per ton in the winter months to get his household provisions, liil libise feed, aiid his fencing ,wiro ujj to tho Moto, and a large proportion

of the small returns for his produce is still eaten up by the enormous cost of transport; , Jjret lie is asked to pay three times the amount of taxes that wfcre exacted from him three years ago. Tho manner in which the increased valuation is made up is also commented on. Tho unimproved value—which is the. taxable value—has jumped up from £2000 to £4990. Why? The settlers at Hotu, according to our contemporary, still have to depend on the pack-horse for supplies; there is no railway, hot even good roads —they still remain isolated from doctors, nurses, and schools. But hot only has tho unimproved value been more than doubled, but £3600 has been added for the value of the standing timber on the landtimber, by the way, which there is no possible Weans 'Of getting to any . market, and no prospect of doing so for years. The improvements, on which no taxation'is paid, despite a great amount of work done and material placed on the property, have only been increased in'the valuation from £1390 to £1020. Mr. Weight, it appears, is so disgusted with his treatment that he has placed his property on the market at £500 under the Government valuation, but without finding a buyer. He now threatens that he will compel the Government either to reduce his valuation or purchase his property, in which latter, event he will leave tho country never to return. Such are the facts of the case as disclosed through the columns of our contemporary, and we fear that there are'many sihiilar case's. In October last the Marton Advocate published the land valuations in the Rahgitikei County by way of illustration of tho artificial increase of land values for taxation purposes. The figures disclosed the fact that the Valuation Department had in the course of a single year increased the valuation of the county from £1,927,179 to £2,959,460—an increase in that short period of time of £1,032,281. Will anyone believe that the productiveness of the land had increased during the same period to an extent to warrant this amazing increase? The statistics of the Dominion, compiled in the Registrar-General's Office, throw further light upori the subject. A table appeals there showing the capital value of this land with improvements ; in the North/and South Islands for the years 1891 and 1908. It is as follows:—a ■ 1891. 1908. Increase. j> ■ £ J? North Island 57,41,115 149,783,911 92,342,799 South Island 64,783,914 103,658,258 38,872,344 ■ Totals 122,225,029 253,440,172 131,215,143 An increase it will be seen of the enormous, sum of £131,215,143—in seventeen years the. value of the.lands of the .coun J try has, in the "view of the' State Valuation Department, more than doubled. This is what the present Government, and its predecessor have so proudly pointe'd to as the increase in the wealth of tho country. But let us look at the matter from, another poiht of view—and it is the crux of the position. In the same voluble of statistics—they are for the year 1907; but carry the valuations to March 31, 1908—the following table also appears: , 1891. 1908. Increase. ' '■ ' ' .£ '■ £ £ Unimproved 'Valuta 75,832,465 161,324,763 85,492,298 •Improved value 46,392,564 92;115,<109 45,722,i5i0 Here it will be seen the unimproved value of the laiid has, in' .the ValiierGeheral's opinion, morß than doubled, while the improved value has hot'bebn increased in anything like the same proportion. Increased valuations on the Unimproved Valub mean increased taxation all round, and the proportion of increase of. unimproved value to the improved value is frequently a very sore point' with , landowners. ,' The position now arrived at is a serious one. During the years of prosperity and high prices for the products'of the . land an increase in valuations with-the consequent accompaniment of additional taxation was inevitable. The 'only. groiihd of complaint was the amount of the increase, dnU although there was a good deal of grumbling no combined action was attempted. Now the situation has fchanged The ■ question •is asked: Since the Government raised Values because of^,the prosperity of the cbiintry, should they not lower values in a time 1 of depression, and when the productiveness of the land owing to the fall iil prices of certain fctaple products is reduced in value? Who will pretend that sheep-raisers obtained as much off their iaiid last year as they did the yfear befdre? The Prime Minister is faced with -aii awkward sitiiatibh. With a shrihkiijg revenue "through the Customs, he is confronted with the possibility of shrinkages- in bthßr directions; Hb is expected to make known to the country the results of tho\financial working of the past year at IhvSrcargill next Saturday evening,,, and it wOhld be interesting to hear ,oh that occasion what he has to say oh the subject of land valuations and . the widespread discontent jpfevaiiing in regard to them.