Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1883-08-24
MUNICIPAL REFORM.

An interesting paper in the current issue of
the North american Rcoic,o is that by Hon.
John A. Kasson on Municipal Reform. lie
points out the fact that the great burden of
debt and taxation in this country comes not
from the national or state governments, but
from the administration Of local affairs. The
thirty-eight States of the Union have an az
grcgatc state indebtedness of $3.50 0G4 ,0i5,
and an aggregate city and town Indebtedness
nearly three times as large, or 500, SO, 25o.
In Massachusetts the proportion of state debt
TO town debt is, approximately, as 80 to 81
in Vermont, as 0 to 4; in New York, as to
eli; in New Jersey, as 1 to Az ; in Pennsyl-
vania, as 81 to 100 in Ohio, as to 43; in
Illinois, as 0 to 81 in Iowa, as to 4 ; In
Missouri as 1G to 2S1 in California, as to
7; in Kentucky, as 2 to 12. In the South
generally the conditions are reversed, although
in South Carolina, Georgia and Florida the
two classes of debt are about equal in amounts.
The source of the evil indicated by these
figures lies, Mr.. Kasson thinks, in the per-
sstcncy of the people in treating local ad-
ministration as matter of politics instead OF
a matter of business. The people divide on
party lines in dealing with their own local in
terests, which have properly no political
character whatever, and SO allow their CON
troll to pass into the hands Of political work
ers, where, as matter of course, they are ex-
travagantly and badly managed. He argues
that the chief interest in proper and eco
nomical municipal administration rests with
the payers of taxes and that they ought to
exercise a control in some measure proper
toned to their interest. He assumes that
the great mass Of voters, who directly pay
no taxes but have an equal power in the con-
troll of expenditures, have only an inferior
interest in good local government Mr. Kas-
sons proposition is that the taxpayers should
have an exceptional voice in choosing those
local authorities who have the control Of
public revenues and expenditures.
Mr.. Kasson says that 1.-THE majority of
electors bind the minority, though the latter
may pay four-flfths of tie taxes" and $50
the tax-eaters, aided by some small taxpay-
ers, may create the debts, and bind firmly
the burden to the shrinking shoulders of tn,
debt-paycrs;" and he goes on to argnc:
The principle of universal suffrage rest
upon the general community of civil right
and liberties, or interest," and CT civil liabili
ties. Each man, as one may say, owns stool
in the national and State sovereignty. Blu
civil rights liberties, punishments, are elm
mated from the sphere of municipal organ
ization, because they are all regulated by
higher authority, and can not be diminished
or changed by .non-law-makng municlpa
corporation. Suffrage here should therefor
be controlled by the latter two conditions
community of interest and of liability. Non
taxpayers, and payers of a poll-tax onl,
have no civil interest which demands equal
ity of representative force in the municipal
ity; no Just interest whatever which is no
represented in the same or greater degree b.
the taxpayers generally; and no interest a
all which is affected by liabilities createC
against the corporation. Represented or not
city expenditure is for them a matter of n
concern. The maxim which joins represen
tation to taxation leaves them outside in it
application to municipal affairs. We her
find II sound principle which would justif,
limitation of municipal suffrage to property
owners and to the payers of taxes, who ar
affected by the liabilities to be created an
by the expenditures within the municipa
jurisdiction. This points the way to on
method of municipal relief.
Some illustrations are drawn from the sys
tenn in vogue in some European cities. Wit
them "the local suffrage has been for gencl
atoms limited by municipal citizenship
quite Independent of the citizenship of tn
State. In some cases, the city has so sue
cessfully managed its corporate affairs tina
its municipal property not only pays all it
expenses, bat furnishes an annual surplus t
be distributed as a dividend among lis law
full citizens. To be citizen there is to holt
an equal share in dividend paying corpora
ton. Imagine such spectacle among Amer
lean cities !" In Vienna the system of loca
government is described by Mr. Kasson a
follows;
The whole body of electors may be divided