The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-09-11
NO MONEY FOR SALARIES,
Way in Which the Supervisors
Tried to Solve a
Problem.
ATTACK ON THE TAX LEVY
The Case VIII Be Submitted to the
Courts on a Number of
Issues.

Mayor Sutro's special clerks are hard at
work delving among the lawbooks to IND
out just what authority he has to block the
order of the Supervisors fixing the next tax
levy at 81 % on each 500.
The main provision bearing on the point
is the following section 3714 of the statutes
and amendments to the code:
The Board of Supervisors OF each county
must, on the third Monday in September fix
the rate of county taxes, designating the num-
Der OF cents on each 500 OF property levied
Tor each fund, and must levy the state ana
county taxes upon the taxable property OF the
county; provided that it shall not be lawful
Tor any Board of Supervisors OF any county IN
the State to levy, nor shall any tax greater
than 80 cents on each 800 of property be lev
led and collected III any one year, TO pay the
bonded Indebtedness or judgment arising
therefrom of this State, or OF any county OF
municipality in this State.
That reads plainly enough, but lot OF
bothersome questions bear on it. AS one
of the clerks rem arked, you can find a
little law to back all sides of the questions
in the case" Under the consolidation act
the Mayor had the right of veto on the
point in question. Under the new consti-
tuition his powers were modified, and
under several legislative amendments
things became a little more mixed. SO
now the whole proposition is pretty well
iumbled up with conflicting law, no mat
ter from what point 1t is viewed. AT
least that is the claim made by those very
| much interested in the case.
The prospects now are that Mayor Sutro
will veto the order and make test case OF
| it for the Supreme Court to determine.
| Nothing as definite as this has been re-
| solved on, however, because the Mayor
has not yet officially received any notice
IS ha Ae hn nd l q m W
what is coming, though, and is preparing
as rapidly as possible to meet the issue.
The Supreme Court will also be called
on to settle another point mixed up IN the
| troublesome shortage of City funds. That
is the payment of the $4,000 owed certain
merchants for materials and supplies fur
nished public buildings last year. No pro-
vision was made for the payment OF the
bills in this years tax levy. There is de-
| cision of the court to the end that bills OF
| one year cannot be paid out OF taxes raised
| to meet the bills of the next year The
! City's creditors have not much hopes OF
| getting their money, unless something ex-
| traordinary transpires in the present Crisis.
| The Merchants Association is pressing the
! Board of Supervisors with petitions and
personal arguments to do everything pos
sible to pay the creditors.
| This $4,000 shortage to merchants
would have been great deal larger had
=! the Supervisors not exercised some tinesS-
ing in dealing with the financial problem.
| The Supreme Court has ruled the salaries
of officials must be paid so in meeting the
| City's outstanding Indebtedness certain
bills of supplies were given preference and
| paid, while certain salaries were allowed to
stand over, as they could be provided for
in the next tax levy, while the bills for
materials could not.
| The result is that lot of big officials are
| now going without their salaries. They
! will have to get along as best they can till
the taxes for the next fiscal year come roll
ingin, several months from now.
Mayor Sutro will not get any salary for
at least two months.
City and County Attorney Creswell did
not receive any salary last month, and he
doesn't expect to get any until next No
vember. By that time something like
| s., GOO, 600 will come pouring into the City
treasury in the shape OF taxes and the
tension will be relieved.
the special funds are all right, so the
| schoolteachers and clerks who get their
money from them are not Inconvenience.
| Official paid out of the general fund, how
ever, are either getting their warrants dis
| counted by the brokers or else they are
waiting impatiently for the taxpayers to
! hand in the 81 rs on each $500 just levied
| by the Board of Supervisors for State and
County purposes.
There is not any chance that payday
| will be postponed on account of an appeal
| to the courts on the veto question, as the
matter will be marked urgent" and taken
up Immediately.