Devils Lake world. (Devils Lake, N.D.) 1914-1915, 1914-12-17

Domestic science and man.
ual training schools at
A. c. -. ............ 10000. 90
Florence Crittenden home. 5000. 90
Missouri Slope fair assn. $500. 90
State aid firemen's assn. 1880. 90
Supt. society for Friendless 500. 90
Stallion registration board. 100. 90
Chartered public account
ants =. 80. ........... $4,000. oC
State poultry assn. ........ 5000
N. D. Live stovk assn -. 500. 90
Indemnity destruction CLAN
dered horses f.. ....... $1,000. 90
Flags for public buildings. 100. 90
Military funds, industrial
school -. -. ......... 10000
S City agricultural train
ing schools -. ........ 1850. 90
1OCdl -. -. ......... S24 f,ISU. w
The total so-called mill
tax levies for 1915 aggre
eating Ia mills on 3O8
millions of valuation
equal ...... ....... ...452,76O. 90
Add to this the n%onprefer-
red claims 500. .......2 97, 73C. 90
Making total Of 10000. $750,A9O. 90
To raise this amount there is but
III mills left of the four mill levy
and III mills will raise $467, 900. 90.
So each n of the n%on-preferred
claims and the claims under the mill
tax levies will be discounted about SO
per cent and the difference will just
about cover the shortage that it has
been estimated would exist December
81, 1915. This means that December
81, 1915, unless the legislature shall
make new appropriations that the
state would have all debst against it
paid. Remember that all of these liza
bilities estimated in the first part of
this article r based on standing cen
tinuing appropriations as made by pre-
vious legislatures and none of the
state officers have power to change
them.
The levying Of so-called mill tax
levies should cease and the present
ones on the statutes revised. There
should be a budget made up for the
legislature to act on in the way of
appropriations and this budget should
include every institution and. every
branch Of the state government. There
should be a small number of men to
get up this budget, three or five, and
none OF them should be members of
any state board or connected in any
way with any institution. They
could do very valuable work. Could
go to every department, see its needs
suggest retrenchments that might be
made and economies practiced, and
made recommendations that would be
very valuable. (Now when the legis-
lature meets it is simply a grab BY
each institution to get as much as
possible for fear some n else gets
more.) A board Of this kind would
know very close as to the probable
revenues and of course would. not
make recommendation in excess of
the income Of the state.
9 No one Of the state officers have
anything to conceal and none Of them
have anything that they wish to cover
up. In all their actions they have
done that which they believed to be
Tor the best interests Of the people Of
the stat, and they have been prompt
ed only by the highest. and pu:
motives. The state Il not bankrupt
or any where near it, but standing
and continuing appropriations have
been made in years gone by in excess
OF the revenues that can be raised on
q Z mill levy on, our present assessed
valuation. We must cut down our out
go to keep within our income.
Sooner. or later we must have faced
this problem and I believed that the
times to do It Is now.
This article Is all too long, but I ask
the Taxpayers Of the, state, to read II
with an unbiased mind and than to
pass Judgment not; from, the stand
point Of some special interest that
may be affected, bhaut from the broad
standpoint a. tosthe whole state.
Il Sincerely, Q
=. 3. HANNA..
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