Morning journal and courier., 1882-05-18
Thursday Morning, May IS, 1882.
MUNICIPAL sELF-GOVERNMENT.

MUNICIPAL SELF-GOVERNMENT
 New York city has long been governed
 from Albany, and it has been governed in
 such fashion that many think a change de-
 sirable. An amendment is now before the | Legislature giving cities the right of self
 government and it has been ordered to
 third reading in the Assembly. The pro- 1 posed amendment makes it the duty of the Legislature to provide by general laws only,
 applicable to all incorporated cities alike, " for the organization of such cities and the restriction of their powers of taxation and contraction of debts ''so as to prevent abus- es" therein. It prohibits the passage of special and local bills affecting municipal government. It prohibits the Legislature from providing for the filling of nunicipa, offices otherwise than by popular election
 or by appointment of the Mayor with or
 without confirmation of the highest legisla-
 tive branch of the municipal government
 except that clerks and subordinates of de-
 partments may be appointed by the heads
 thereof. It declares that the people of every
 city shall have the power to organize and
 administer their own local government ''sub-
 ject only to such general laws as the Legisla
 ture may enact" It requires the approva,
 of the people, expressed at 8 general election,
 for any increase of debt or taxation, any un-
 dertaking of new public works, or the direc-
 tion of public funds into new channels of ex
 penditure, and for any issue of bonds other
 than revenue bonds.
 This amendment has not provoked much discussion in the Assembly yet, though it is expected to when it comes up again, but it has been strongly advocated by several mem bers, among them Mir. Roosevelt (Repubi- l cam, of New York city, who declared that the reforms aimed at were in the interest of every resident of great city, irrespective of party, and regretted that the impression seemed to prevail among his Republican asso- c1ates that the amendment was designed to l deal blow at the Republican party He maintained that nine -tenths of the taxes paid | ln New York city were paid in consequence of lays passed in Albany. The New York |
 V0rLd says: Every one of our municipal | scandals may be directly traced to the fact l that under the system which has prevailed it l is impossible to hold anybody to a real ac- count for any official mismanagemert short of actual malfeasance; and at least two May ors have found that it is impossible to hold | delinquent official responsible even for actual | malfeasance. If the legislators of the | State were as well acquainted with l the needs of the city as the inhabitants of l the city, their legislation would be in- | competent for the reason that they are not | responsible to those whom their legislation | affects. If they were responsib @, their leg 1 islation would still be incompetent for the | reason that they not informed. It would 1 not be proper to put such a power, with no sort of responsibility attached to it, in the | hands of an assembly of the wisest and most honest men. And the Legislature is not com posed of the wisest and most honest men," The Times favors municipal self government, but it does not think much of the present l scheme for obtaining it. It refers to a plan 1 few years ago by a Commission of l whichIMr. Will am NJ. Evarts was the head, Its chief feature was that which provided for cities of more than 100, ,OOO inhabitants Board of Finance to have control of the lay ing and collecting of taxes and the disburse ment of revenues. The members of this board were to be elected, but in their choice suffrage WAS to be restricted to citizens pay Ing taxes on at least $500 of property or an annual rental of not less than $25O. The l amendment was approved by the Legislature then i'll session, but the restriction upon suffrage was made the means of defeating it in the next Legislature.
 The session is so near its close that it is not probable that those who are working for B reform will be able to accomplish anything | this session, but the evils of the present sys- tenn are so many. great and appa rent, that a change will probably be made soon. The government of cities ought to be beyond the reach of constant tinkering by Legisla- |