State Board of Equalization Mine net proceeds returns, 1900-1918.

These net proceed statements identify mine owners and the location of each mine and indicate gross yield of the mine(s) minus certain permissible deductions. Correspondence may be attached. The notarized returns were submitted by mine owners, as required by law, to the Board of Equalization as the basis of tax assessment by the Board.

In 1896 the legislature enacted a law requiring "Every person, corporation or association of persons engaged in mining upon a quartz vein or lode, or placer mining claim, containing any gold, silver, copper, coal, lead or other valuable mineral deposits, must...make out a statement of the gross yield of the above named metals or minerals from each mine owned or worked...and the value thereof....The statement mentioned...must contain a true and correct account of the actual expenditures of money and labor in extracting the ore or mineral from the mine and transporting the same to the mill or reduction works, and the reduction of the ore and the conversionof the same into money, or its equivalent, during the year." (Laws of Utah, 1896, ch. CXXIX, sec. 62 and 63). In 1899, the law was modified to require that these statements be filed with the Board of Equalization rather than the county assessor.

The statements summarize the net proceeds for the preceding year. Each form shows the owner's name and address; name and location of mine; weight of minerals extracted and value in dollars; various deductions such as extraction costs, transportation costs, reduction costs, and repair costs; and the net proceeds (the difference between the gross yield in dollars and the total of the various costs). A notarized oath taken by one of the mine officials testifying to the validity of the statement is part of the form. By 1915, space is allotted for Board of Equalization calculations and amendments. Correspondence is sometimes attached to the forms.