The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1912-08-17
County Clerk Returns Levy to
Board of Education.
HE WRITES SCORCHING LETTER
Bad Faith and Ignorance of
Conditions Charged.
False Statements Declared to
Have Been Made.

board of education extended on the
tax rolls this year unless the board
makes a levy for general fund,
building fund, interest fund and sink
ing fund that will be legal in every
respect" according to the ultimatlIm
of County Clerk Samuel G.. thinner
man, issued today. The ultimatum
was in the form of a letter to 1he
board of education, written by the
clerk, with which the certif1cation of
the school levy, received by the clel k
yesterday, was returned. Zimmerman
declares that the levy for general pur-
poses maliciously plans deficit, and
that the same is true of the building
fund levy, both of which he says are
provided for in the boards levy is a
misnomer, the clerk says, and means
nothing at all. making no provision
sfor taking care of an immense bond IS
ssue, part of which falls due nearly ev-
fery year for the next 5 years. VIXEN
1.-THE entire amount of over half a mil
T1ion dollars is due.
! In his letter to the board the coun-
5ty clerk refers to a conversation with
fudge w. E. Atchison, a member of
zthe board, and Clerk NJ. G. Holman of
the board, had last night. In talking
of the matter he declares the article
from Holman that appeared in the
State Journal yesterday afternoon, was
written by Holman at the request of
i.Judge Atchison, Holman having told
la1im so last night. He declares he was
iwilIing to take the responsibility for
imaking the levy for sinking fund if
the board Lacked the moral courage
to make it, but that now he will insist
upon the levy being made in every way
legal before it will be extended on the
rolls. If the levy is not made legal,
there will be no extension and no mon
ey to pay the running expenses OF the
Topeka schools for the current year.
He Tells the Whole Story.
In his letter Zimmerman goes over
former conversations between himself
and members of the board, and makes
nubIic in a COPY of the letter given
herewith many things that heretofore
have only been limited at He charges
the clerk of the board, Holman, with
an attempt to Justify and even popu-
1arize it's illegal conduct by the publ1-
cation of false Statements when he
declares Holman frankly admits that
he does not know a number OF things
with which his statement had to DEAL
but Gin fact has no interest whatso-
ever in the matter except that MS
statement was prepared at the re-
quest of Judge Atchison, member OF
the board
Zimmerman's plea for a number of
years has been to provide a sinking
fund for the payment of bonds. Last
year, according to his own statement
and that of members of the board, he
urged that something ought to be
done But because there was a big
Increase in the city and county tax
rate, making the total levy record
making the levy heavier. This year,
with prosperity in the air and ma
terial reduction in the city and county
levies, he insists that something be
done. Even then he declares he was
willing to take the responsibility of
extending the levy for a sinking fund, |
but he declines to permit the board 20
levy an insufficient amount for other |
funds.
Ready for Court Fights.
IF they want to fight it out in the
COURTS Sam says, they are wei
come
The board has until August 25, or
just next week, in which to make the |
levy, or refuse to make it, to come |
within the law.
Zimmerman's letter follows:
ITO the Board of Education.
Gentlemen: On July gath, 1912, |
in line with my duty as county clerk
. of Shawnee county, called upon
Prof. Starr, superintendent of the
schools of the city of Topeka, to dis |
cuss the question of tax levy for the
board of education for the year 1912, |
and suggest that the board must
clear up the floating Indebtedness
warrants stamped Not paid for want
of funds and drawing six per cent in |
terest) which had been created in iii |
rect violation of law, contrary to the |
recommendations of the finance COM |
mittee of the board, and over the per-
6onal and official protest which 1 en-
tered at the time the board made it's
tax levy for the year 1911; also to in |
dictate to what extent the county clerk |
would insist upon the board taking
care of it's bonded Indebtedness.
AT that meeting Prof. Starr and !
myself went over the whole situation |
very carefully and we agreed per- |
general fund must be ample to pay
the large deficit of the year 1911, and |
take care of the estimates for the
year 1912, after making due allow 1
IInH0llaPtad Ia
the levy for building fund must be |
ample to pay the heavy deficit of the |
year 1911 and take care of the estI- |
mates for new buildings to be erected |
during the fiscal year ending June 80, |
1913, after making due allowance for |
unsolicited taxes.
No Plan to Pay Debt
''On one point only did we disagree |
that of making a levy for sinking |
fund. called attention to the fact |
that the present bonded Indebtedness
of the board is 1929, $1,000, more than |
one per cent of the total assessed va1- I
uation of the taxable property of ~
district; that all of this vast sum s
payable within the next fifteen years; |
that to date absolutely no provision |
had been made for any part of it; |
that the average annual levy now nee |
essary to raise this sum by the date |
of expiration of the last bond would |
be $35,311.0O, and that this amount |
would increase 'proportionately every
year that the board neglected, failed
or refused TO create a sinking fund.
ST called particular attention to the
fact that bonds sggregating S41 700
would be due and payable out of the
1912 taxes, and suggested that the
board should take care of these bonds
by making levy of nine-tenths of ]
mill on the dollar for sinking fund
Prof. Starr offered no business solution
of the problem and suggested no legal
way to avoid extending such tax. but
intinated that he would prefer to have
the county clerk assume the response
biIity of making such a levy under a
statute which gives him that authority.