The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-09-13

pond the City for the purpose of making
many needed Improvements. Possibly GER
tain items might be omitted from the pres
ent tax levy, yet 1 think there would be
found little or no opposition to the tax for
Improvements if the people were assured
that the money so raised would be Judi
ciously expended for such improvements.
A rigid economy should be enforced, to
the end that the public receive full value
for the money expended. l look upon
new City charter as the only hope of the
people Greater safeguards must be placed
over our expenditures.
w. H. Grim said: 81 think our
obligations should be met, yet it does
seem that we are getting but q
poor return for all the money expended;
certainly nothing adequate to the amount
of money which the present tax levy would
seem to indicate. The time has arrived
when we must bond the City in order to
properly carry on a system of adequate
Improvements. The method of running
our City under the system of politics now
existing is very loose one and should be
speedily changed. To my mind there
seems no good and sufficient reason for the
present high levy. 1t is highly injurious,
as 1t comes at very bad time for the well
fare of the City in business sense. With
all this amount of taxation we are not get
ting nearly all we need in the line of i'm
provements."
G. D. Toy of Bovee, Tay & Co. said: "I
do not think the discussion of this uues-
tion will do any good. We all know that
the tax levy is too high; that it will de-
press business and retard investments, but
how are we going to help the matter by
agitating the question? l can see no good
that will result from it,
A. M. Speck of A. M. Speck & Co. said:
1.-THE high tax levy will, in my opinion,
seriously interfere with the era of better
business, which seemed about setting in.
1t will have tendency TO check invest
ment in real estate, as it will add some
thing to the ever-present question, will it
pay?" Buyers will have a disposition to
hold back"
S. c. Buckbee of Shainwald, Buckpee &
Co. said 1.-THE levy is certainly too
heavy. Under a new charter and a more
economical administration of the City
government. we could get the same
amount of work for very much
less m ipa low HoT owe efioo+ do not
investments to any degree. Most people
understand or believe that it is tenn
porary matter, that next year it will not
be so high. Besides, the tax levy as COM
pared to other cities is not exceptionally
high. 1t is not so high as that of New
York. The tax levy there is upon actual
valuation also. Here the valuation is that
at forced sale-about 80 per cent
G. S. Capp said: eve do not receive an
adequate return for the money invested.
Notwithstanding the many supposed safe
guards against extravaganza in the law,
which is expressly intended to keep ex-
penditures with the limit of the money
raised and to prevent deficiencies being
created. they occur every year. The Su-
preme Court decided that deficiency TINS
wrongly created cannot be paid out of the
revenue of the next year, and in doing SO
only declared that the express terms of the
law must be followed. Nevertheless the
terms of the law and the decision of the
court are disregarded, and the attempt is
made to do what is prohibited by putting
the deficiency into this years bills and
then the entire levy is liable to be rem
dered invalid. In such cases the poor peo-
pie and those of moderate means pay,
while the wealthy and the big corporations
escape.
"Plaintive appeals are made on behalf of
certain meritorious objects which the pub
lie admit are proper, but when the money
is collected it is paid for other purposes.
Thus the Board of Education lately ad-
mltted that money raised for the repairs of
schoolhouses had been diverted to other
purposes which involved increased ex-
penses in the way of salaries, etc., and now
they would like million dollars for the
repairs the taxpayers have already paid
for in previous tax levies. A similar pol
icy has also been pursued by the Super
visors, so that we really do not know what
we are paying for when such levy is
made.
''It is clear that until there are addi-
tional and effective safeguards placed
about taxation and the expenditures of
pablo money, the City had better not
branch out too largely in new projects for
so-called improvements. A new charter is
the only way in which the security needed
can be obtained. And a vote of the people
is the only means of providing for meeting
such portions of the present deficiencies as
are meritorious. Now, when real estate
and the income from it are so depressed,
and foreclosure sales are becoming more
and more numerous, it is not 8 good time
to burden real estate more heavily and
check sales and improvements by render
ing it less desirable as an investment
Without the protection afforded in years
past by the veto power in the hands of the
Mayor, we are too much at the mercy of
the Board of Supervisors and the heads of
departments. So far as l have learned the
views OF Mayor Sntro, as published in the
daily papers, think he is right in his OPP
position to the levy, and that every lawful
means should be taken to prevent soheavy
eetax levy being imposed upon uN And