All real property in Virginia, including mineral land, improvements thereon, and minerals, is reserved for localities as a source of tax revenue. The ad valorem taxation of mineral property has traditionally been a responsibility of county commissioners of the revenue. Because of the technical nature of mineral property assessment and the lack of expert assistance available to commissioners of the revenue, there arises a question as to the equity with which mineral property is taxed.

Since coal is Virginia's most extensive mineral resource, the study was confined to the ad valorem taxation of coal property. It was found that often economic factors such as thickness of the seem, quality of the coal, and location of the deposit are not considered by commissioners of the revenue in evaluating coal property. Investigations made in the large coal-producing counties revealed wide variations in assessment procedures, involving heavy reliance on information obtained from the owners of coal deposits. This indicates the probable existence of inequalities in the assessment of mineral property.

A comparison of assessed valuation and the taxes levied thereon with the value of mineral production further indicates the existence of inequalities. It was found that the taxes levied on all mineral property, and the taxes levied on mineral property under development only, amounted to 0.L and 0.1 percent, respectively, of the value of mineral production. Also indicated, but not conclusively, was a lower ratio of assessed to actual value for coal property than for ordinary real property.

A majority of the commissioners of the revenue interviewed felt that improvements needed to be made in assessment procedures in order to bring about a more equitable ad valorem taxation of mineral property. Assistance similar to that provided counties in the assessment of ordinary real property by the State Department of Taxation would seem a logical solution to the problem of attaining accurate mineral property assessment data. Such assistance might be properly provided by the Virginia Geological Survey. The provision of assistance in determining the extent and value of mineral property would overcome the basic difficulty associated with the ad valorem taxation of such property.