The New York herald., 1876-11-22
COMPTROLLER GREEN'S REPORT.
The Appropriations FOR 1876 and What
Became of Them
SlEBBINy EXPLANATION.
More Money Forthcoming for the Park
Maintenance Fund.

and Alderman Lewis were present
The Comptroller authorized TO make the follow
ing ssues:Cro,on main stock, $40 ooo Croton water
stock, s5o,coo Museum OF Natural History stock,
$4,000; revenue bonds TO reimburse Fourth school
district OF Wcstchcster county. $5,6o5 o.
Alter several unmportant transfers had been made
and considerable routine business transacted, Mayor
wcKnAM called attention 10 tho special obJsc, OF the
meeting OF transferring moneys TO
maintenance OF the public parks
rnE coMrrKoLLERs STATEMENT.
Comptroller GREEN thcn proceeded read tho follow.
Ing report relative TO the mattcr.--
NEW YoRK, Nov 10, 1876
TO BOARD ESTIMATE ASp AProRTioxMExT:-
a communication irum tho Department OI Public
Parks requests Tho transfer VI certain unrxpcndcd bal
anccs OF appropriations Tor the years 1874 and 1875
and alsu estimated balances ot
for the present year. This unlcat ION MAS re-
lerrcd 10 the Comptroller, who respectfully submits
following report
lhe balances sought to be transferred are as FOL
lows
From sundry unexpendcd balances of 1874 ST. 9l3 "a:
OF 1879 SO, AT 3D. Fron balance OF APPROXIMATIONS of
1876 as follows: Mainlenanco and repairs OF bridges
over Harlem River, $is.OJO; celebration OF Indepcn-
dcnco Day. s320 66 rcrairing aud rebuilding bridges
on tho Bronx River. $4,000, ior police salaries,
$20,0u Total, $63 CO' %
To appropriations lor salaries, 81, 900; to mnnen.
nnce oi roads, &c Twenty. third and twenty fourth
wards 900; TO maintenance OF parks aud places,
$5l, 66, ~.
Ii all these balances were transferred requested
the required would Eo: DO furnished as thcre
is error In Tho statement presented by The Park be-
tment OF $1,000 The request of the Department Of
Public Parks. made three mouths before tho year
closed, ior sweeping transfer Gi nearly the APP
Il y Sy RI a w
unexpended at The end oil this year. TO other Objects OF
the present year. for which sufficient appropriations
had thcy bcen properly husbanded have already been
made, Is strongly suggestive ot bad latin, and pro.
posal which has precedent and is no, consistent
u sound public policy or juslabc ny any existing cir
cu,nstances that have yet been made apparent.
The amount OF tho Appropriation annually mado 10
Airport onment, in order that limit may be set upon
Improper or unnecessary expenditures. The power
to transfer balances M within certain hints, also vested
IN his Board. No transfer should DO allowed by this
Board until II Is satisfied that the objects Tor which tho
appropriations were originally made will not need
tncni, without the ccarcst evidence OF good fath
ana OF proper administration the part OF depart
cnt asking them. Il is the duty o THIS Board TO look
into the reasons before allowing such transfer loose
of the law IN tins respect opens the door
10 abuses IN tho expenditures OF the public moneys;
TO tho diversion OF tho .unds required Tor pur.
pvse Ia which the public interest requires they should
be applied to purposes which may better the
tc csis OF the officers concerned. Tho law plainly
tends and practice has bcen to make transfers for
specific purposes only, and whenever tho Board is re-
qucsted sanction transfer the par tcunr object and
purpose as well as tho reasons Tor making arc sub
mittcd, and the transfer, u approved, Is made
cordingy Tor the specihc purpose only, ana Tor
general purposes, us Is now asked by the Park Depart
mcnL Goucrnlly speaking. transfer Of balances o the
current year should never he made. except 10 meet
some urgent necessity which the Board OF Apporton-
ment approves and which could have already
Ioreseen or TO provide lawful CLAIMS whici cannot
otherwise be paid, and The transfers should only be
made from appropriations, The original pur-
poses Of which have been accomplished Let
for momcnt the action OF the Park department
espcctlng the appropriations and balances which they
WISH transferred. That department asked sos, 100 10
keep the bridges Harlem River in repair. They
were allowed $4,000 Up to November l, 1876. they
have expended ST., 004 30 This money was either
qursd or Il moi. II It was required TO keep tho
bridges repair 10 meet the public necessities then II
should have been so used. II It was not, then the
call Tor II was wrong upon the taxpayers and an I'M
position upon the Board OF Apportionmcnt Tho Park
Department asked for $39 900 to naintan the bridges
over the Bronx River in 1870 They allowed
$i50 600 Up to the lst OF this month they had cx-
pended OF this amount only $33 SO. This money
either wanted or II was not II u was not
Il should not have bccn called for;
ii was II should have been used Tor the purpose
which u supplied Had considerations OF economy
dictated tue saving OF these bridge moneys, or Il II
was found after being called for that they were
required, this would afford some Justification Tor thor
Dcing used But this cannot be claimed or neither
OF these propositions Is true We have from
what accounts tue Park Department wants transfers
made, and now let us see 70 what account they wish
them 10 be ade mado they 60 10 swell The salary
nccounts winch this Board took especial pains 10
limit ana TO swell the maintenance account OF tho
parks, already sufficiently provided or. There Is no
room for doubt that the number OF saarcd persons
mnd the salaries paid by the Department OF Parks
excessive am informed that rutlcss Efforts hay. been
made tho part OF Commissioner 10 Keep within
the appropriations and to reduce saarcs and that tho
Park Department was repeatedly informed carly in tho
year that unless they cconomizcd their moneys they
would run short before the year was out They
had months ago full warning The Board OF Appor
transfer apparent balances OF former years We're the
application ot the Department OF Parks mcritorious
this rule would exclude tho transfer asked Tor by the
pproprations Tor 1874 and 1s75 anu IS iound
that the ruc just applicable to the year 1885,
balances that may seem TO exist are only apparent
They do not exist In fact. and no transfer OF them
should be made except vi imperative necessity.
But the transfer asked Tor ny tho Park Department
should not lie made Tor several other reasons section
OF chapter 303 OF the Laws ol 1874 also o chap
ter Jos of the satnc year, provide as fuows:-
"rhc said Board OF Estimate and Apportionmcnt shall
ton Tor any which may DO iound by tho hoad or
tho department for Which such appropriation shall
have been made to uc In EXCESS Of the amount
auired deemed DO necessary Tor the purpose
jccis therefor such other purposes Or objects Tor
winch the appropriations are insufficient, or such
as may require the same; ana II II is found At
the time when the estimate Il made OF the expenses
OF conducting tho public business Of The county OF
New York Tor tho next succeeding fiscal year that
there vii, be a surplus or balance remaining uncx-
pended OF any appi Opr;aioa then existing at tho cnd
oi he current sca year such surplus may be appicd
10 ike purposes in the next succeeding year.
In the case o Two OF the appropriations
for 1915, from which the Park Department requests
transfers 10 be made-to wit, the bridge appropra.
tlonsit canuot be pretended that the appropriations
those objects and purposes ior 1876 oi
the amount required Indeed u Is very cIoar that they
are in excess because the PARK Department. asks
Tor year sim larger sums Tor the very pur.
poses, as foilows:--FOr bridges over Harlem RIVER.
nainicnancc repairs &C, $,o,3oo Tor repairing aad
rebuilding brdgcs over the B,oux River, $23, 600
xs5 500 The law as above cited imposes two condi-
tionsFirst that the appropriations from which the
transfer - proposed 10 DC made be excessive; and,
secondly. that ihsre DO deficiency IN the approprs-
,ons 10 winch the transfer TO be made Neither Of
these conditions exalA
The Board u A2portonmcn; Gxcd the amount 10 DO
expended BY ne Park Department in 1876 Tor salaries
f55 900 sum more thnn adequate, and within this
sum Tho salaries shouti and might easily have
been kept, but from the time thus Board nxed this
limit upon salaries shat Department has propor,o
ally exceeded the smoa9s appropriated ior salaries,
ana has diminished tkc maintenance account for
OF ccra'n cn,pioycs that ehouid be pad from salary
account, thus creating dc1ccncy IN tho wages
money has been eought 20 be expended BY the
Park Department 70 pay talar'cs. immediately
on The salaries OF thcx PARK Department
nInc OF tho cmpoyds OF that dct, r,mGI s&no up
10 that time been on the salary ~ \ .Nhnrgcd
the account Tor paying laOorerd W'fI|. Aoui any
apparent change IN thcr duties. ana W ~ nsancc,
with increased pay. This nttcmpt WA53tN MONEYS
from appropriation tor the bencntW on(ylhcr
discovered by Tho Finance Department. Vqswt,hssand-