The Portland daily press., 1900-01-01
What Happens When
Debt is Refunded.
No City In the Country is in
Better Condition.

"Ths city of Portland IL rs well of 81
any city In the Upitsd States financial
IT," said City Treasurer George II. Libby
Saturday. "we havs besn paying our
bills as we 60 along while osker cities
have tesn borrowing money to meet the
expenses Of permanent improvements
which are made. II has been the policy
Of this city to keep up high rate OF tax
alton TO meet its bills and to reduce Its
debt. The reduction Of tie city debt is
going on steadily ard uninterruI tsdiy
and In few years more we shall be In q
position to reduce our indebted meas to al
most nothing aud reduce our tax rate and
keep IL down."
Mr.. LIBBY went on to cay that he could
not quote from memory the exact figures
bat would give them approximately In
order t prove what he had said. In Ju-
~, 1909, the city will have the option OF
taking up s7l7,0t0 of four per cent bonds.
This issue OF bonds, 81 the money marke.
Is In Us good condition as 1t now lie, and
Mr.. Libby said his thought every indica-
tlon pointsd to this, oan be refunded az
three per cent besides bsiug greatly re-
dpced. by this time the city will tie In u
POSITION to take mp $4,000 OF this In
debtsdness besides carrying on its psrms-
nent work and keeping up with the ex-
penses OF all departments.
"Ds you realize that in the last few
years." said Mr.. Libby. 'tbe city of Port
land has laid out over 5000 In public
buildings and bridges alone without In
creasing its Indebtedness by a single dol
IatY Other citiss woulj have cared for
this outlay by issuing bonds but Portland
has paid for its buildings and improve
msf IS as 1t goss along. These buildings
which refer to are the armory, the KIM
erson school, the Ismodellins OF the High
school, besides the CONSTRUCTION Of Turkey q
bridge which was q big undeIt king in
itself All OF tails has been done without
greatly inorsssinS the rate OF taxation
while the ~, / debt has bee, Jsducsd all
the tire. hine years ago the gross debt
Of the city was 1mething like %. H22 0OO,
! while ;ent deit was 81, OH In
round hunters. This year 10 gross dat
10 ~. 700 90. while this net debt Is 81: $40,
0OO OF taersabouts.
come dus, t ley can b. refunded at thrss
per sett and the Indebtedness still fur
Their reduced. The natural inoreass OF the
sinking fund Is s20, COZ a year and in six
years you can see that 1t will have grown
1870 O00 In New York the city Of Port
,aLd Is regarded among unnncers RS one
Of the belt municipalities TO which mon
| t,x. In paA in 4 : Cnnnefy and
are the gamers ny this fact whenever We
are called upon to refund any bonds CT
aoat nav ones. Ii has been the policy OF
the city TO borrow from itself, by using
the sinking fund which cin earn us little
or no interest instead OF borrowing
money ut q high rat, OF interest and hav-
ing the indt BIZ dness fall due all ut once.
Our big bills havs bssn spread over ps-
rlod Of four or tive years and ara cared
FIR by our annual income.
;'Ip round numbers the valuation of
the city IL now about 42,O0J.Oo0 OF dol
lars. Our stats tax Is something ike
Slss. 600. while our county TAX Ia So, 600
The state assessors rather stick II to the
city OF Portland, their valuation Of the
city being something like Two millions
mors than our own asssssofs make IL. Nv
cry year, you see, we have to pay out Mt
the very start $lsO. COO which IL not to be
used for municipal purposes at all. Our
Indebtedness Was Increased by ss0l, 900 by
the annexation of bearing and that city
had no sinking fund whatever when she
came to Us.
"In the thirty -dvs years Of my sxpsri-
snoe In city affairs, have found that tine
city government looks after the oily 8
business much better than the personal
bushes, OF the city oouncilmen 10 looked
after. Much complaint IL made bsosuss
the various city departments ovsrrun
their appropriation but oan you show me
a business house or person In this cisy
who doesn't do the same thing In the
course Of the Year, don't believe the
city pays out ~ much proportionstsiy In
keeping t. public buildings In repair. for
example, AZ does the average property
owner and the buildings are we'll cared
for too. While other oities which could
name are plunging deeper and desper In
to debt every year and piiing up burdens
for other generations 20 lear our city Il
paying for Its improvements and meeting
Its expenses as 10 goes along and at the
same time red ucing It's outstanding In
dsbtsdnsss. In this We have been wise
for the people who take the pains to study
our condition cannot fall to see that In the
oourss OF ten years we shall be In fine con-
dition financially and have as small tax
rate with little or no debt as do some oil
those PLACES which have been maintain
ing q low rate Of taxation and pilinG up
debts which must ultimately be cared for
~ higher rates Of taxation.
1--WE are gaining many wealthy resi-
dents because Of this.very faot. A few