Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1914-07-24
Hawaii Probe Commission Has
Session to Secure Ideas
on Public Auditing


morning by the Hawaii county graft
probe commission in the course of a
short session with City and County
Treasurer c. j. Mccarthy and City and
County Clerk ID. Kalauokalani Jr.
No suspicion of graft or even of
minor financial irregularity caused the
unannounced meeting of the commits
sion today. Nor was any irregularity
uncovered RI. ~
The commission is now engaged in
writing its report on the Hawaii situa-
ton, and wished to get the advice and
opinions of Honolulu officials upon the
general subject of public accounting in
county and territorial government. Ii
wished also to take a short survey of
the local methods and to see what
check the county treasurer has upon
expenditures ordered by the board Of
supervisors. g.. ....- ..~.
| in the course OF an hours session in
the supervisors assembly room. the
commission brought to light some in
teresting facts going to show that con-
siderable looseness exists in the han
ding of finances Some of the facts,
city officials to know in advance what
the city revenues will be. have been
emphasized again and again in the
press during the past few years
4 Chairman H. B. Elliot Of the com
mission presided and Commissioners
Williamson and Long, Special Attor-
ney r. w. Breckons, who acted under
the attorney-general's authorization in
prosecuting the Hawaii grafters; City
Clerk Kalauokalani and his deputy,
Eugene Buffandeau, and CITY Treas
urer Mccarthy were present. The hear
ing was informal all the way through
and the commissioners emphasized the
point that they were asking questions
simply to get clear idea of what inn
provements can be made in public ac-
! counting
/, In partictiar. the session brought
out the fact that an act of the last
legislature, requiring the city clerk to
send to the treasurer duplicate claims
or DUPLICATE vouchers to correspond
with the claims presented to the audi
tor is not being observed.
4 These duplicate vouchers are to be
sent to the treasurer so that he can
! at once check claim for money when
| 1t is presented to him.
says Office overworked.
4 Clerk Kalauokalani explained that II
Y Is a physical impossibility for his Of
nee to observe the law now, that the
Office is oyerburdened with work and
that as these duplicates would have
Ito be signed by the clerk or his dep
(, uty the labor was too great.
i THE law does not allow us TO as
/ sign this work to any clerk, SAID
| KaIauokalani Il or my deputy must
sign the papers. The primary law re-
eauirements, the great register work
coming with the political season and
the growth Of the general work of the
clerks office are such that We simply
can't do all the work.
| A suggestion was made by Breckons
that the claim and warrant should
be one document and this was heartily
Endorsed by Treasurer Mccarthy. The
! treasurer also agreed with a sugges-
, ticn by Chairman Elliot that there
should be an Independent auditing |
system or else that there be a city |
controller to act as diSbHrsing agent |
and the auditor audit the books of |
the treasurer, clerk, etc. Commission
er Williamson suggested that it might |
be possible to do away with the audi
tors Office entirely and to have war |
rant clerk and perhaps another clerk |
in the treasurers office.
Loopholes in Warrant System.
Lcopholes in the system of regis
tering warrants and their subsequent
movements were shown. Treasurer
Mccarthy admitted that he has no
certain way of checking signatures in
paying out money on warrants-that |
the only signature check is in the /
auditors office
He stated also that in dealing in /
registered warrants with local banks /
he has had to send letter to the
Bank of Hawaii holding himself per-
scnally liable for any fraud or irregu-
larity in the warrant
This matter of registering warrants
and securing the money from the
banks was gone into at some length. II
The treasurer explained that he has
made arrangements with the banks
so that city employees will not be at
the mercy of loan sharks who would
buy their warrants at discount. He
said that he was willing to guafan-
tee these warrants and to hold him
self personally liable so that he could
get the banks to cash the warrants
and keep the employees out of the
hands Of the loan sharks.
Counties Should Levy Own Taxes
The commissioners asked whether
the counties should be given power to
levy their own taxes and there was
general agreement with this plan
Mccarthy pointed out that now the
taxes are not collected until long aft
er the board of supervisors has to
make its estimates and that the coun-
ty is generally doing business on a
credit basis.
The meeting generally brought out
dissatisfaction with present account.
ing systems though the treasurer stat
MApPfhHE I.irEHcEc r III