Daily Republican., 1879-07-31
City Fina neiertn9.

Clty kAmo ucbeIAu1s
It does seem hard that the City Coun-
Gil should be censured for doing some
thing which Councilman Guthrie says
it cannot help but do-borrow money
70 help out with the current expenses
about three months every year. The
fiscal year runs from January to Janua.
~ again, and the City Charter he says
prohibits Council from levying any
more tax than will be sufficient to run
the City for that year, and this he
furthermore says leaves a gap from jan
uary to July when the taxes are col
lected which must be run on borrowed
money, or all Improvements must be
stopped. We much doubt however
whether the prohibition in the City
Charter will bear the strict construction
which Mr.. Guthrie puts upon it, no
doubt it prohibits the assessing of =
greater amount Of mouey than is sutfi-
sient to carry on the city for more than
one year at time, but it is not 50 GER
tain that that year must lie between
the two Januarys including one Of ofthem,
aud If there is any ordinance which
thus designates the fiscal year, 1t is
inconsistent and in opposition to the
requirements Of the times and should
be. repealed, or else the ordinance fixing
July as the time to commence the col
lection of taxes should be repealed and
should be fixed on the first of Janusry
which would then conform to the fiscal
year. This would do away with the
necessity of borrowing money for six
months as has heretofore been the case,
and If q sufficient tax rate has been
levied all floating debts would then be
avoided. The thing needed all along
was that the commencement of the fis-
cal year and the time for the collection
Of the City taxes, should be made
identical and thus prevent many mis-
understandings which from clashing
o. interests creep into the public mind.
We cannot see why the City taxes can
not he as easily collected in January as
in July, for the people at that season of
the year are about as flash of money or
more so than at any other season. Mr..
Guthrie says, and We. do not dispute
him, that Council cannot levy heavier
tax at one time than will carry on the
city for one year, but we would ask
him whether the rate $l.l5 is sufficient
for that purpose.
We rather suspect that the finance
committee with Mr.. Guthrie atits head,
has found that the $l45, 900 funded by
the Legislature last winter included a
part of The present years expenses
that there was balance over that
amount after all the floating debts of
the previous years were absor bed, that
was applied to the present years cur
rent expenses, and thus left but nine
months of the year unprovided for, and
tor which tax rate of Sl.l5 was sufi-
cient. 1t is right and proper that the
tax payers should understand exactly
why the tax levy is 50 much lower this
year than last and for several years
previous, and when the rate is raised
next year as it cannot help but be, they
should know exactly the cause. In
1878 the rate S1.20 was but barely suf.
fcient to meet the current expenses
such as the improvements on the streets
and the water works that had to be
made, the lighting Of the city and the
payment of interest and salaries, and
this year, with a greater demand for
street and water works Improvement
with the salaries appropriation as great
as heretofore, and with the interest ap-
preparation swollen by the addition of
b7250, Mr.. Guthrie tells US that a rate
of $1.l5 is sufficient. This is feat in
fnanciering that will require ADLER
fnanciers than Mr.. Guthrie to accots-
piish, without the aid of several ttrous.
and dollars at the beginning of the year
over what was needed to fund Tie pub
lie debt, and even with that cid there
is still prospect Of ! snug little float
ing debt at the winding up of the year.