81 N.J.L. 106 | N.J. | 1911
The opinion of the court was delivered by
The town of Kearny Iw this writ questions the propriety of a judgment of the board of equalization of taxes
But a difficulty is encountered in the form of the judgment which prevents its affirmance in tolo. The land was divided into blocks, corresponding to the county blocks provided for in section 76 of the Conveyances act of 3898 (Pamph. L., pp. 670, 701), and these blocks subdivided into lots upon which separate valuations were placed by the local assessor and all of which were included in the appeal. The board of equalization seems to have disregarded these subdivisions and to have reduced simply the total valuation; a course which in effect turns the entire acreage into one tract of some three thousand three hundred acres assessed anew en bloc, making it imprac
The point is of importance, because on examination of the items, as originally assessed, there is considerable variation in values of lots in the same block, not to speak of different blocks. The board did not even direct a proportionate reduction similar to the proportionate increase ordered by a county board in Wayne Township v. Powder Company, 47 Vroom 175. We think this gross reduction was incorrect practice, and that the board should have assigned a separate value to each subdivision included in the appeal. The local assessor is required by law to describe the property by block and lot numbers as shown on the assessment maps, where such maps are adopted, and to value each parcel separately. Pamph. L. 1903, pp. 394, 399, §§ 6, 9. Naturally the reviewing board should render its judgment on the same plan, or endless confusion would result.
Eor this reason the judgment of the board of equalization must be reversed, but without costs, to the end that said board render a new judgment according to the practice herein indicated.