Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1912-12-16
MONEY MUST Go
BACK TO COUNTY
FINDS GOVERNOR

The $70154.fG which the Territory
/ deducted from the counties 10. REIN
! bHrse itself for the payment OF that
amount to the territorial schools dur
3 ing the latter half OF 1911. mast be
! paid back to the counties, and OF this
! sum Oahu Will get pTOXimately
! So, coo rs its share. This was the de-
! cisiOn reached at a conference Sat
nrCiat afternoon between the Govern
| or, the territorial treasurer and the
auditor
They finally concluded that while
/ the schools were entitled to the S70,-
000. the Territory had no right to
! take that amount from the counties
| on the theory that the counties had
been overpud in 1911. The question
| is one of deep technicalities, develop
| ing apparently from bookkeeping
error, but has injured no one depart
| ment or the Territory. 1t arose
! through the workings or possible mis-
understanding Of the tax and school
! laws.
Harrington Explains.
HS III "uIClI lue teri
| school fund deficit has been handled
has given the impression that the
public schools of the Territory have
overdraWn their account" said w. r.
harrington, commissioner of public
instruction, who was chairman Of the
commission that framed the present
law providing money for the public
schools.
There can be no deficit for which
the public schools should be charged
unless the school teachers are paid
more money than is provided for un-
der the law passed by the last legis-
lature. And that has not happened.
That law made the payment of
school teachers salaries, under the
schedule provided in the law, a first
charge en- the territorial revenues
from real and personal prOperty-a
first charge after interest and sink
ing fund had been taken care of.
I'm other words. the money for the
schools comes first, among the sever
al departments of government, under
a definite schedule laid down in the
law.
DoOHhcSPII9 idHS'C'
Nov it may be and apparently is
true, that the officers of the territori-
al government. is laying out their
scheme of finance have designated
the money apportioned for the
schools as a school fund but it is
not true that the public schools have
at any, time taken or used more mon
ey than was rightfully due them I'M
der the law; or that more has been
drawn from sany school fund than
was proyided@by law.
1T may be. that the treasurer or
the auditors has taken from the coun-
ty fund poeket to pay the school bill !
and now finG they. must take from the |
territorial pocket. But let no one run |
away with the idea. that the schools |
have called for or taken more than |
has been properly coming to them.
Schools "the Goat"
THE complaint l. have against the |
method in which the conversation on T
this topic has proceeded is, that some |
of the chief5spokesmen. thoughtlessly =,
perhaps, have been making the pub I
lie schools the goat of all the diff |
Guilty. They have given the impress |
sion that the large expense of the |
schools is what has caused deficit. |
Such statements are entirely mislead- |
ing.
IF there is any deficit it must be |
the fault OF some other. department !
than the public schools of this Terri.
tory.
THE law passed by the last legis-
lature made the expenses Of the pub
lie school teaching force a first
charge on the real and property taxes
of he Territory, provided that nothing
in the law shall be interpreted to in
terfere with the sinking fund and in
terest on the public debt. The schools
come first.
The whole deficit proposition ap-
pears to be one of bookkeeping, as
the legislature did not provide for a
definite school fund There is only
one school fund under the law, and 4
that is the fund made up Of the taxes 4
from real and personal property, less
the money needed for interest and 4
sinking fund.
If any other department OF the =
government has drawn more freely i
than it should on these funds, let
that department bear the brunt Of 1t.
But let the public understand that Il
there can be no deficit for which the Il
publics schools of this Territory can 4
be responsible