The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1876-05-24

The Comptroller and the Tax Levys
The question as to the power Of the Mayor
to nominate and, with the approval of the
Board Of Aldermen, to appoint a Comp
troller under the charter of 1873. is rendered
OF grave importance by the duties devolved
upon the head Of the Finance Department
in relation to the city estimate and tax levy.
The law requires the Board of Estimate and
Apportionment, which consists of the Mayor.
Comptroller, President of the Board OF
Aldermen and the President of the Depart
ment of Taxes and Assessments, to make
provisional estimate of the amounts re-
quired to pay the expenses Of conducting
Che public business of the city and county
and the Board of Education for the then
next ensuing financial year, ''between the
LIST day of August and the LIST day of Novem-
ber' in each year. Within ten days after
November l this provisional estimate is to be
submitted by that Board to the Board of
Aldermen and the latter Board is thereupon
to be convened in special session to consider
such estimate and to make such rectifca-
tions and objections as may seem desir-
days within which to reach their
final conclusions on the provisional
estimate, when it must be returned to the
Board of Estimate and Apportionment,
whose duty it then is to consider such objec-
tons and to make final estimate, the
amount of which is certified to the Super
visors of the county by the Comptroller az
the basis for the years taxation. In making
both the provisional and final estimate the
concurrent vote of the Board of Estimate
and Apportionment is required.
The term of Office for which Comptroller
Green was appointed under the law of 1871
expires on November 20, or when his sue
cessor shall have been duly appointed and
qualified. 1t is not probable that the final
estimate for the tax levy of 1877 will be COM
pleted before that time. If Mr.. Green
should 60 out of Office on November 20 his
successor would have to complete the unf1n-
ished duties of the Comptroller in relation
to the final estimate Should the new Comp
troller''s appointment be illegal the tax levy
of next year would be vitiated, and any per-
sons who chose to do so might resist the
payment of their taxes, block the wheels
of the government and involve the
city in litigation. It is, therefore, es-
sential that the doubt existing as to the
legal authority Of the Mayor and Aldermen
to appoint head of the Finance Depart
ment, under the defective law Of 1873, should
be removed by judicial decision before Mr..
Green is allowed to retirefrom his Office
The simplest way to accomplish this will be
through an injunction restraining the Mayor
from nominating and the Aldermen from
confirming Comptroller until the legal
question has been decided. Under the law
Mr.. Green holds over until his SUCCESSOR
shall have been duly appointed and qualified.
His official acts after November 90 would,
therefore, be as legal as are his official acts to-
day, and no legitimate interests will suffer
by few weeks delay in his retirement,
even if it should eventually be decided that
the charter of 1873 does not preclude the
Mayor and Aldermen from appointing his
successor. The people of New York would
feel more confidence in the head of the
Finance Department appointed by the
Mayor to be chosen next November than in
one selected by Wickham, at John Kelly's
dictation, and confirmed by the present
Tammany Aldermen.