The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1904-10-23
MORE PENSIONS
THAN 1T CAN PAY
FLCRlDA'S PENSION PROBLEM
WILL BE AN ISSUE IN THE NEWT
LEGISLATURE.

The Number of Pensioners Increns-
ing Faster Than the state Can
Provide Means to Pay Them-NOt
Enough Money Under Present
MiIIage Tax to Last This Year
without Pro- rating the Pensions.
Tallahassee, Oct. 22.-The controllers
office has been the busiest in the Can
itol since the first of the month pre-
pairing and sending out warrants in
settlement of the quarterly payment of
pensions to the old Confederate SOL
diers and their widows. The work for
the last quarter is now about COM
pleted, and the records show that I'D
10 date warrants have been sent to O.
500 pensioners, 1889 of whom are old
soldiers and 1041 are widows. It is
expected that between rs and 100 more
warrants will be required to complete
the quarterly payment, and these will
be sent out within the next few days.
It is estimated by the state treasurer
that it will require $4,000 to pay the
pensions for the past quarter.
Florida is one OF the most liberal of
the Southern states in the granting of
pensions to Confederate soldiers and
their widows. The present law levies
state tax of mills for the payment
of pensions, which will raise fund
of approximately 100000 this year.
First State Pensions in 1887.
The first pensions were granted by
the state in 1887. The state was not
then in the best financial condition,
and such restrictions and limitations
were made in the law. that only the
very needy We're able to comply with
its provisions, and only about $50 pen
sions were paid during that year But
at nearly every session of the LegiSla-
ture since then the pension law has
been amended and made more liberal.
The present law places the enforcement
of it in the hands of the pension board,
comprised of the Governor, Controller
and Attorney General, and it is their
duty to pass upon all applications for
pensions. Any person who served in
the Confederate army or navy, and
who is permanently disabled by rea-
son of wounds or disease, or who is
more than 65 years of age, and any
widow of a Confederate soldier, and
who is not possessed of $500 in property
is entitled to a pension varying from
SIS to 500 per annum.
The Roll Increasing.
Though many pensioners have been
and are being dropped from the list on
account of death and for other causes,
yet the roll is increasing daily. The
records show that in January, 1908,
there had been granted since 1887, pen
sions to 1,345 males and $50 females.
In January, 1904, the number had in
creased to 1,77S males and 1887 females,
and the total to date that have been
granted by the board since 1887 is
S,2SS. OF course, from the above num-
bers must be deducted those who have
been stricken from the lists from death
or other causes.
To show how the amount of money
needed for pension purposes is increas-
ing, the state treasurer's report for
the first quarter of 1908 shows an eX-
pendiyure of $40, 6S1. 81 for this purpose;
for the second quarter, $42, 766.26; for
the third quarter, $44375.23, and for
the fourth quarter. $50, S4702, making
total of S17S,62042 expended during
the year 1903. The amount derived
from the 2-mill tax was $1S6,515.48,
which left a balance in the treasury
for the year from this fund of only
S7S95O6.
Over $2OO,OOO in Pensions.
There was expended $69,06S25 for the
second quarter of 1904, and it is esti-
mated that $4,000 will be required for
the third quarter, and as the fourth
quarter will be an increase over the
third, it will be seen that the 100000
which it has been estimated will be
derived this year from the 2-mill tax
will not be sufficient to pay all the
pensions in full. In such contingency
the law provides that the money shall
be prOrated.
The pension law is one of the prob
lens that will have to be solved by
the next Legislature. The millage Will
have to be increased, more limitations
placed in the law or the prorating con-
tinued. If the Legislature should in
crease the millage, the money deriv-
able from it will not be available until
1906, and in the meantime the number
Of pensioners is daily increasing, caus-
ing larger division of the amount to
be prorated.