New-York tribune., 1871-09-23
THE DEBT AND THE CONTROLLER.

ing expenditures for the City and County
Government seem 80 plain that it is matter
of wonder that Mr.. Connolly should have
found means to evade them. The Two Per
Cent Act, passed April 10, 1871, provided that
$23, 1000 should be raised this year by taxa
ton. This sum, added to the proceeds of the
General Fund, gave revenue of 900,
which was not in any case to be exceeded.
The law furthermore commanded the Mayor,
Controller, Commissioner of Public Works,
and President of the Department Of Public
Parks, within twenty days after the 1st OF
May to meet as Board Of Apportonment,
and distribute the revenue as follows: 1. They
were to pay out of it the interest on the City
and County debts and the principal Of such
debts falling due in 1871; 2. They were to
pay the quota Of the State tax payable by the
City and County; 8. The rest Of the money
they were to "apportion among and set apart
"to the various departments and purposes OF
"the City and County Governmental" and it
was expressly enacted that no money should
be spent over and above the sums so apprO-
priated. Section reads:
"No liability for any purpose whatsoever shall be hero
York or Officers Of the County Of NewYork exceeding
in amount the appropriations made for snch
for any indebtedness SO incurred"
This, the advocates of the Tax Levy assured
us, would effectually prevent eKtravagance in
the Controllers Office, and keep our expendi-
lures within reasonable bounds The State
tax this year amounts to $6,741,0 ,056, and the
debt and interest payable during the year are
q little over $9,oo0,0oO. That would leave, for
all the purposes of the City and County Gov
ernments, about $1O,25s,OoO; and if we got off
with that we should be lucky.
But what are the factsi Mr.. Connolly has
already raised on Revenue bonds $22, 100 200 in
anticipation Of the taxes of the year, and on
Consolidated stock $9,425,o00, not to speak of
the money borrowed for special purposes on
bonds authorized by special acts of the Legis-
lature. That is to say, he has raised since last
December, for general purposes, more than
double the amount the Board Of Appropriation
was authorized to use during the whole year,
the State tax and annual interest on the City
and County debt being deducted. And the
money is gone, too. That the treasury is any
thing but well lined recent developments but
too clearly show. Mr.. StOrrs, the Deputy
Controller, in his testimony before the Joint
Committee of Aldermen, Supervisors, and Cit-
zens, disclosed the facts: that the City account
was overdrawn on the 81st Of August $4,19S,-
Oss 64; that the City and County ought to have
an average weekly balance of at least couple
of millions, and that the County account,
Jumped with the City account, gave credit
balance of only $764,S78 5S. What Mr.. Con-
molly has done with all this money perhaps
some of the various courts and COM
mittees will be able to find out. The
acts of the Legislature under which he has
assumed authority to do these things are so
framed as to warrant q suspicion that they
were intended to mislead the public, and to
confer upon the Controller colorado right
with which the people never would have know
ingly invested him.
The Tax Levy of 1870 authorizes the Con-
troller to issue bonds in anticipation of the
revenues Got the City and County,, and not to
exceed In amount the amount Of such rev.
"enues" in order to meet expenditures under
"the appropriations for each current year."
That is to say, as the taxes are not payable
till the end of the year, he might borrow
money to meet his daily expenditures, paying
it back when the revenue came in. But Mr..
Connolly has other use for his cash. The Act
for the Consolidation Of the Debt of the City
and County Of New-York empowers him to issue
consolidated stock "to pay Of and cancel any
bonds or stocks of said city falling due in
the year 1871, and also the amount required
TO be raised in said year for the annual in
stallments on any stocks of said city," and
similar provision enables him to dispose Of the
County debt In the same manner. Mr.. Con-
molly interprets this o. applying to the Reve-
nue. Bonds; so that II he 900 fit he can not
only add the entire current expenditure for
ordinary purposes of the government to our
permanent funded debt, but can actually put
out the whole debt at compound interest,"
which In fact ne seems to be doing! Weshall