Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1911-04-06
NEW YORK INVESTIGATOR CRIT.
icIzEs MANAGEMENT OF IOWA
INSTITUTIONS.
COSTS MORE PER CAPITA
TO SUPPORT STATE WARDS
System Expensive Method Of Hand
ling Public Funds, He Says-Cor-
pares Expense of Institutions With
Those Of New York and Indiana
Reports Adversely to the Plan.

York TO adopt the complete centFal
state board of control system for the
government OF state institutions may
result from an adverse report on the
management of the Iowa institutions by
the Iowa state board Of control. made
in New York by Henry c. Wright
who visited Des Moines to see the
board few weeks ago.
Mr.. Wright reported that Iowa spends
more and gets less for its money than
either Indiana or New York under their
existing systems OF governing the state
institutions.
He says Iowa spends $55.4S per capita
of inmates for food: Indiana, Si3.03.
and New York, $500
He says Iowa pays 81 for supervision
thru and by the board of CONTROL OF
the expenditure of $54.S0 While Indiana
gets supervision of $3.50 for its 81.
Mr. Wright's report compares New
York states system of fiscal control
with the systems in operation IN Iowa
and Indiana The state institutions III
Iowa are under the complete admins
trative control of central board, and
have been since 1898. In Indiana each
institution is an independent unit.
There is no central body which has
power to dictate policies or to control
finances and there never has been. New
York states system is midway between
and has been in operation for about
seventeen years. Tie report has been
summarized IN New York as follows;
The results obtained under the three
systems are shown in table giving the
,1S1 Nc
year by the institutions in the three
states. The institutions in Indiana.
with no centralized control, expended
s43.O3 per ca pita for food: New York,
with partial centralized control. spent
S45.O5 for food; While Iowa, with com
plete centralized control. spent s55.4S
per capita for food. In order TO assure
himself that the low per ca pita cost of
food in Indiana did not result from the
purchase of an inferior quality. Mr..
Wright took with him to Indiana and
Iowa on his inspection trips the same
food inspectors who passed upon the
quality Of the food furnished New York
state institutions. He found that the
quality of the food in the three states
was approximately Uniform.
Cost Of Supervision.
Mr. Wright found that it cost New
York state 81 TO supervise $3.50 eN-
pended by the Institutions, while In
diana obtained a supervision Of $3.50
for its 81. In Iowa 81 paid for the SUI
pervision of only s54.s0. The cost per
inmate OF such supervision in the three
states. was as follows:
lhulana ...... sz-oo
iowa ........... ........-..-.... 90"
Ne" "Fh .....-..... 9.4o
Commenting on this, the reports avs:
1t is clear. therefore. that on the basis
of expenditures supervised. the cost of
supervision in New York state was
about 16 per cent higher than in Iowa
and nearly twice as high as in Indiana
It is generally assumed in business
undertakings that centralized control
reduces overhead or administrative
charges. 4 similar reduction, however
is not noted in connection with the
centralized control in New York state.
In this state more than four times as
many inmates are supervised In CEN
trail departments as in Indiana or Iowa.
yet the per capita cost Of such super
vision is materially larger than in eth
er Of those states.
In investigating the beef furnished
the institutions of the three states. Mr.
Wright discovered that. tho New York
state receives all of its beef from Chi
cago or points west of that place,
nevertheless it has been paying less per
pound for its beef than has Indiana or
Iowa. altho contracts call for approXi-
mately the same grade of meat in the
three states. The fact that, regardless
Of freight charges beef has been cheap
er in New York state than in Indiana
of Iowa. the report points out. was prob
ably due to the fact that the institu-
tons in Indiana and Iowa received the
quality Of beef contracted for, while in
New York state-as part l of the re-
port shows-a large portion OF the beef
delivered was cow beef. or was other
wsie Of a lower grade than that speci-
fled in the contract.
Handling Of Supplies.
II comparing the manner in which
the food and supplies were handled,
under the three systems. Mr.. Wright
found that the inmates of the institu-
lions in Indiana with no central con-
troll, consumed i.i16 pounds OF beef Per
capita per year, which, by an expert
dietician, is considered an ample
amount: the inmates in New York state
| institutions, with inperfectly central
| lZel CONTROL, CONSUMED l,t-o pOuiiuS PEI
capita each year.
These findings lead Mr.. Wright to
believe that further Capitalization OF
control of state institutions in New
York state would add materially to the
cost of operating the institutions. and
would not produce commensurate re-
suits.
| Mr. Wright says he found the Iowa
4 Of CONTROL comm Of man nj
high reputation, who apparently exert
| ed everx, effort to nronerty nrnyidA for