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Appraisers, Stenographers and Clerks.

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three thousand dollars; in Westchester and Albany counties, twenty-five hundred dollars; in Nassau county, two thousand dollars; in Queens, Monroe and Onondaga counties, one thousand five hundred dollars; in Dutchess, Oneida, Orange, Rensselaer, Richmond and Suffolk counties, one thousand dollars. Each of the said appraisers shall file with the state comptroller his oath of office and his official bond in the penal sum of not less than one thousand dollars, in the discretion of the state comptroller, conditioned for the faithful performance of his duties as such appraiser, which bond shall be approved by the attorney-general and the state comptroller. The state comptroller shall retain out of any funds in his hands on account of said tax the following amounts: First. A sum sufficient to provide the appraisers of New York county with six stenographers, three clerks and an examiner of values,10 of Kings county with three stenographers," and of Erie county with one clerk,12 appointed by the state comptroller, whose salary shall not exceed fifteen hundred dollars a year each. Second. A sum

The compensation of appraisers in Kings county was changed from three to four thousand dollars.

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7. By Chap. 310, Laws 1908-in effect May 18 of that year. compensation of appraiser in Nassau county was made not to exceed two thousand dollars.

8. By Chap. 312, Laws 1908-in effect May 19 of that year. — The salary of Richmond county appraiser was increased to one thousand dollars.

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9. Chap. 658, Laws 1900-in effect April 25 of that year. vided for two stenographers for the appraiser in New York county. By Chap. 496, Laws 1902-in effect April 30 of that year. vision was made for "five" stenographers in New York county. By Chap. 283, Laws 1909-in effect May 4 of that year. vision was made for six stenographers in New York county. 10. Chap. 310, Laws 1908 · in effect May 18 of that year. vides for four clerks and an examiner of values for the New York county appraiser's office.

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By Chap. 283, Laws 1909- - in effect May 4 of that year. ber of clerks was reduced to three.

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11. Chap. 658, Laws 1900- - in effect April 25 of that year. vided for one stenographer for the appraisers in Kings county. By Chap. 368, Laws 1905-in effect June 1 of that year. vision was made for two stenographers in Kings county.

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- Provision

By Chap. 283, Laws 1909-in effect May 4 of that year. was made for three stenographers in Kings county. 12. Chap. 368, Laws 1905-in effect June 1 of that year. The appraiser of Erie county was allowed one clerk.

Appraiser Is a Public Officer.

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to be used in defraying the expenses for office rent, stationery, postage, process serving, and other similar expenses,13 necessarily incurred in the appraisal of estates, not exceeding ten thousand five hundred 14 dollars a year in New York county, and three thousand dollars a year in Kings county.15

445. A Transfer Tax Appraiser Is a Public Officer.

A transfer tax appraiser is a public officer, and his office is not one of the subordinate positions in the public service to which the so-called "veteran acts" (section 21 of the Civil Service Laws) which relate to the employment of honorably discharged soldiers and sailors in the public service of the State, apply, and therefore the transfer tax appraiser of the county of Queens, though a veteran, may be removed from office by the Comptroller of the State without notice or stated charges of incompetency or misconduct. People ex rel. McKnight v. Glynn, 56 Misc. Rep. 35, 106 N. Y. S. 956.

446. Appraisers Appointed under This Section Can Be Removed at the Pleasure of the Comptroller.

In People ex rel. McNeile v. Glynn, 128 App. Div. 257, the relator was a transfer tax appraiser in Kings county, having been appointed in May, 1905, and he was removed on January 17, 1907, by the respondent.

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13. Chap. 62, Laws 1909, being Chap. 60 of the Consolidated Laws. Added the clause "and other similar expenses "in place of the words 66 et cetera."

14. Chap. 709, Laws 1907-in effect July 23 of that year. - Allowed the sum of nine thousand dollars for office rent, expenses, stationery, etc., in the appraisal of estates in New York county.

Allowed the

Chap. 310, Laws 1908-in effect May 18 of that year. sum of ten thousand five hundred dollars for office rent, stationery, expenses, etc., in the appraiser's office, New York county.

Increased

15. Chap. 283, Laws 1909 — in effect May 4 of that year. the allowance of office rent, stationery, expenses, etc., in the appraiser's office in Kings county from fifteen hundred dollars to three thousand dollars per annum.

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Comptroller Can Remove Appraisers.

There were no charges of incompetency or misconduct against him and his removal was without a hearing. The relator claimed that as he was a member of a volunteer fire department he could not, under section 21 of the Civil Service Law, be removed from his position except for incompetency or misconduct shown after a hearing upon due notice, upon stated charges, etc. After referring to the enactment of section 229 of the Tax Law the court says:

"When the Legislature, with knowledge of the fact that the incumbent of the position, whose appointment by the Comptroller was to be then authorized, if a veteran, or fireman who was a member of a volunteer fire department at the time of its disbandment, or who had served therein the time required by law, could not be removed under the provisions of the Civil Service Law, except for incompetency or misconduct established by a hearing on preferred charges, gave to the Comptroller the right of removal of appraisers appointed by him or his predecessors in office at his pleasure, without excepting either veterans or firemen, it is plainly apparent that their intention was to make the tenure of office of appraisers terminable at the pleasure of the Comptroller, and that the right was intended to be given him, irrespective of the provisions of the Civil Service Law, to remove an incumbent although a veteran or fireman, at will, and without charges or hearing. There could have been no broader, more comprehensive or better understood language used than that the Comptroller could remove at pleasThe absolute right to remove could not be exercised if, as a condition of its exercise, the Comptroller had to prefer and sustain charges against an incumbent of incompetency or misconduct, with the right in the courts to review and set aside his act against the will and pleasure of the Comptroller. Such an inconsistent and anomalous condition was never intended by the Legislature. If such a construction were given, the words " may at pleasure remove are without meaning and of no effect, a result which the court is not at liberty to declare. The only construction that can be given is that the legislative intent was that there should be no restriction upon the right and power of the Comptroller to remove any appraiser appointed by himself or his predecessors in office, whether such appraiser was a veteran or had been a fireman or not, and that such removal was absolute and final and not the subject of review by the courts."

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447. The General Subject.

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Section 13 of the Act of 1885 gave the surrogates in each county the right to designate some competent person to act as appraiser, upon the application of any interested party or upon his own motion. By the re

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vision of 1892, section 11 of that act provided for the surrogate to designate an appraiser upon the application of any interested party, including the county treasurer or the comptroller of New York city, or upon his own motion, and this section also contained other provisions which, however, are not relative to the appointment of appraisers. Section 14 of the Act of 1892 provided for certain assistants for the surrogate of New York county.

Section 11 of the Act of 1892 became section 230 of the Act of 1896, to which was added from time to time several amendments, but only such as are relative to the appointment of appraisers and stenographers are referred to at this time, reference being made to the other provisions under sections 230, 231, 232, following.

By chapter 284, Laws 1897, amending section 230, and in effect April 16th of that year, the State Comptroller was made an interested party, who could require the appointment of an appraiser. Chapter 658, Laws 1900, amending section 230, and in effect April 25th of that year, provided that the State Comptroller shall appoint and may at pleasure remove five persons in New York county; two persons in Kings, and one person in Erie county to act as appraisers therein, the amendment providing for their salaries, etc.; this amendment also provided for two stenographers in New York county and one stenographer in Kings county and their salaries. Section 230 was further amended by chapter. 173, Laws 1901, in effect April 1st of that year, by providing for the appointment of one person to act as appraiser in the counties of Albany, Dutchess, Monroe, Oneida, Onondaga, Orange, Queens, Rensselaer, Richmond, Suffolk, and Westchester, and fixing the salaries of such appraisers. This

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amendment provided further that in each county in which the office of the appraiser was not salaried the county treasurer should act as appraiser.

By chapter 368, Laws 1905, in effect June 1st, the provisions of former section 230, but only those relating solely to the appointment of appraisers, stenographers, etc., was amended and re-enacted under section 229 of the Act of 1905 as above, the law now providing for six appraisers in New York county, and Kings county is allowed two stenographers instead of one, as formerly, and the appraiser of Erie county is allowed one clerk.

Reference to the other provisions of former section 230 will be found in sections 230, 231, and 232, post.

The effect of chapter 658, Laws 1900, amending section 230, and directing the State Comptroller to appoint appraisers in certain counties, was to deprive the surrogates of such counties of the right to select the appraiser, and this is true although the tax is assessable under chapter 399, Laws 1892. Matter of Sondheim, 32 Misc. Rep. 296, 66 N. Y. S. 726; affd., 69 App. Div. 5, 74 N. Y. S. 510.

By chapter 283, Laws of 1909, in effect May 4th, Kings county is allowed three appraisers and three stenographers.

448. Chapter 658, Laws 1900, Is Constitutional.

Chapter 658, Laws 1900, which amends article 10 of the Tax Law by providing, among other things, for the appointment by the State Comptroller of transfer tax appraisers in the counties of New York, Kings, and Erie, is not a local act, and consequently does not violate the Constitution, which provides that " no private or local bill which may be passed by the Legislature

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