1. Exercising the powers and performing the duties conferred or imposed by sections one hundred and seventy-five to one hundred and seventy-eight, both inclusive, of this chapter on the tax commission in relation to appeals from decisions of boards of supervisors in the equalization of assessments and corrections of assessment-rolls;

2. Exercising the powers and performing the duties conferred or imposed by sections forty-five-a, forty-five-b, forty-five-c, fortyfive-d, forty-five-e and forty-five-f of this chapter on the tax commission in relation to the determination of the final full and equalized valuation of special franchise assessments;

3. Exercising the powers and performing the duties conferred or imposed by articles nine, nine-a and sixteen of this chapter on the tax commission in relation to the revision and resettlement of accounts for taxes under such article, on applications made therefor;

4. Exercising the powers and performing the duties conferred or imposed by section two hundred and sixty of this chapter on the, tax commission in relation to the apportionment of mortgage taxes. (Added by L. 1921, chap. 90, in effect March 16, 1921.)

§ 171-b. Administer oaths and compel testimony. The members of the tax commission, their deputies, secretary or other officer or employee duly designated and authorized by the commission for that purpose shall have power to administer oaths and take affidavits in relation to any matter or proceeding in the exercise of the powers or duties of the commission under this article. The commission shall have power to subpoena and require the attendance of witnesses and the production of books, papers and documents pertinent to the investigations and inquiries which it is authorized to conduct, and to examine them in relation to any matter which it has power to investigate and to issue commissions for the examination of witnesses who are out of the state or unable to attend before the tax commission or excused from attendance.

A justice of the supreme court either in court or at chambers shall have power summarily to enforce by proper proceedings the attendance and testimony of witnesses and the production and examination of books, papers and documents called for by the commission's subpoenas.

Any person who shall testify falsely in any material matter pending before the commission shall be guilty of and punishable for perjury.

The officers who serve the commission's summons or subpoenas and witnesses attending in response thereto shall be entitled to the same fees as are allowed to officers and witnesses in civil cases in courts of record. (Added by L. 1915, chap. 317; thus am'd by L. 1916, chap. 323; former § 171-a thus renumbered by L. 1921, chap. 90, in effect March 16, 1921.)

§ 171-c. Conference of local assessors. The commission may request the local assessors of every tax district in the state to meet with the commission once in two years, upon a day and at a place designated, for the purpose of considering matters relating to taxation, securing more uniformity of valuation throughout the state, and discussing and formulating desirable changes in the laws relating to taxation and method of assessment. The traveling and other necessary expenses incurred by the local assessors in attending such meeting shall be a charge against the county within which the district which they represent is located. In counties wholly within a city such expenses shall be a charge against said city. (Added by L. 1915, chap. 317; thus am'd by L. 1916, chap. 323; former § 171-b thus renumbered by L. 1921, chap. 90, in effect March 16, 1921.)

§ 172. Official seal. The state tax commission shall have and use an official seal; and the records, its proceedings and copies of all papers and documents in its possession and custody may be authenticated in the usual form, under such seal and the signature of any one of the tax commissioners, deputy commissioners of the secretary, and shall be received in evidence in the same manner and with like effect as deeds regularly acknowledged or proven. (Thus am'd by L. 1915, chap. 317; L. 1916, chap. 323, in effect Apr. 26, 1916.)

§ 173. Official visits to counties. The tax commission shall cause an official visit to be made in every county in the state at least once in two years, and inquire into the methods of assessment and taxation, and ascertain whether the assessors faithfully

discharge their duties and particularly as to their compliance with the provisions of this chapter requiring the assessment of all property not exempt from taxation at its full value. The members of the board of supervisors of the county and the assessors of the cities, towns and villages within the county shall meet at the place or places within the county designated by the commission. Supervisors in addition to the compensation provided by section twenty-three of the county law, and assessors, shall be entitled to receive compensation at the rate of four dollars per day for each calendar day actually and necessarily spent in attending a meeting within the county held for the purpose of conference with the state tax commission or a member of such commission and mileage at the rate of eight cents per mile by the most direct route from his residence, in going to and returning from the place within the county where such meeting is held. Such compensation and mileage shall be a county charge in reference to the town officials and a village charge for the village assessors. (Thus am'd by L. 1911, chap. 120; L. 1915, chap. 317; L. 1916, chap. 323, in effect Apr. 26, 1916.)

§ 173-a. Reassessment. At any time within thirty days after the completion of posting and publishing notice of final completion of the assessment-roll by the assessors of any tax district, if the commission shall have reason to believe from information furnished by any taxpayer or otherwise that such assessment-roll shows undervaluations, inequalities; omissions or irregularities, sufficient to make it inequitable as between owners of real property taxable within the tax district or as between the tax district and other tax districts in a county or in a city comprising more than one county, it may apply to any justice of the supreme court of the judicial district within which such tax district is wholly or partly located, for an order directed to the assessor or board of assessors of such tax district, requiring such assessor or board to show cause at a time and place specified therein, why such assessment-roll should not be corrected. Service of a copy of said order and the affidavit upon which the same was granted on one assessor shall be deemed sufficient service. Such order shall be returnable before the justice issuing it, on a day not later than ten days from the date of the issue thereof. If it shall appear upon the return day of such order that such assessment-roll shall not have been prepared and completed in accordance with the

provisions of this chapter, such justice acting summarily may by order direct such assessor or board to correct such inequalities, irregularities, omissions and undervaluations, and in his discre tion, may cancel such roll and direct that a new assessment-roll for such tax district be made by such assessor or board and in either case shall fix and determine the date on which such new or corrected assessment-roll shall be completed, the date on which application for review of the new or corrected assessment shall be heard, and the date on which the new or corrected roll shall be filed and delivered to the supervisors or other lawful authority.

Notice of such hearing for review shall be given one week in advance in the same manner as the notice of the first completion of the assessment-roll so corrected or cancelled. After the determination of complaints the assessor or board shall attach a certificate to the new or corrected. assessment-roll that such roll has been completed in conformity with the provisions of the order of the justice, and such roll shall be the assessment-roll of such tax district in place of the assessment-roll cancelled or corrected by order of such justice. If such new or corrected assessmentroll cannot be completed in time to take the place of the original assessment-roll in such district for the levy and collection of taxes for the current year, said taxes shall be levied and collected upon the basis of the original assessment-roll and when the new or corrected assessment-roll is completed the inequalities in the taxes levied on the basis of the original assessment-roll shall be reme died and compensated in the levy and collection of taxes in such district for the year next following the completion of the new or corrected assessment-roll by crediting the taxes levied in excess of what they would have been had the reassessment been made in time, or charging in addition the difference between the amounts levied on the basis of the original assessment-roll and the amounts which would have been levied on the basis of the new or corrected assessment-roll, as the case may be.

In cities the mayor or a borough president and in towns a supervisor and in villages the president or a trustee may apply to the tax commission on behalf of the tax district which he wholly or in part represents, for a hearing and determination of the question of inequalities or undervaluations in the assessment of property as between such tax district and other tax districts in the county or in a city where said city comprises more than one county. After such application a hearing shall be held and

upon a determination that sufficient inequalities or undervaluations exist therefor, the commission shall apply to a justice of the supreme court as in this section provided, for the correction of the assessment-roll of the tax district, or tax districts complained of. For the purposes of this section an incorporated village shall be deemed a tax district. (Added by L. 1915, chap. 317; thus am'd by L. 1916, chap. 323; L. 1917, chap. 94, in effect Mar. 28, 1917.)

§ 173-b. Commission to enforce compliance with law. Whenever it shall appear to the satisfaction of the tax commission that any assessor or other public officer or employee whose duties relate to the assessment of property for taxation has failed to comply with the provisions of this chapter or with any other law relating to such duties or the rules of the commission made in pursuance thereof, the commission after a hearing on the facts may issue its order directing such assessor or other officer to comply, with such provisions of law. or of its rules, and if such assessor or other officer for a period of ten days after service on him of the commission's order shall neglect or refuse to comply therewith, the commission may apply to a justice of the supreme court of the proper county for a summary order to compel such assessor or officer to comply with such provisions of law or of the commission's order, and the justice shall have power to issue such order. (Added by L. 1915, chap. 317, in effect Apr. 15, 1915.)

§ 174. State board of equalization; powers and duties. The commissioners of the land office and the members of the tax commission shall constitute the state board of equalization. The state board of equalization shall meet in the city of Albany on the first Tuesday in June in each year, for the purpose of examining and revising the valuations of real and personal property of the several counties as returned to the state tax commission, and shall in accordance with the rules of equalization set forth in section fifty of this chapter so far as applicable fix the aggregate amount of assessment for each county, upon which the comptroller shall compute the state tax. In so fixing such aggregate amount of assessment for a county the state board of