The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-11-21
NOT A PARTISAN QUESTION

This is in no sense partisan ques- 1 tion, nor should the personal element of any man in public life enter into 1t. 1t matters not to us by whom this debt was contracted. It is a debt owing by the state, and our good name, as well as our financial standing requires us to meet it. in the most business-like way | During my campaign for governor l l told you of this deficit in the states | finances and promised you that insofar as I could I would furnish a plan to l relieve the state and to pay this debt, without an increase of the tax rate and without reducing the efficiency of the various branches of the government, and | in my various messages to the legisla- ture during its recent sessions, I fur nished detailed statements of the finan- i cial conditions of the state and set forth my views as to the best methods Of l handling them, but of necessity, some | of these were estimates based upon fig ures which could not, at that time, be verified.
 | These estimates rorecasted somewhat | larger deficit than is shown by the actual 1 figures These estimates, however, would have proven practically correct, if cer- tain amounts we then contemplated would 1 be paid, had been presented to the audi | tor and warrants issued therefor These | sums, amount to approximately $l5V,O00 | included the repayment of certain license taxes that had been paid under an act of the legislature of 1907, which act had ! been declared unconstitutional by the higher courts, of which amount the audi 1 tor has, up to this time, issued his war rants for only Ss000 or s10,0O0.
 | In addition to this, there were bills 1 passed by the last legislature authorizing 1 the payment of debts agains the state, made prior to the present administra- ton, amounting to s25,0O0, for which no | warrant had been issued before the be- 1 ginning of the present year. These ag- gregate amounts would have increased the present deficit to approximately the l estimates made during the sessions of the legislature
 l FINANCIAL CONDITION
 The financial condition of the state as shown by the auditors and treasurer s l statements. on September 30 shows a de- felt of $2, ,236, SS7.3
 This is materially larger than the amount shown by the auditors report for the fiscal year ending September 30, 1914, but is accounted for in the fact that dur ing the last fiscal year there is included large amounts of contingent appropria- tions released during the year and prior | to the beginning of this administration together with the extraordinary expenses of the holding of the legislature and quite a considerable amount contained in appro- priations to cover amounts due by the state for which nonappropriations haG been made, no fund having been provided for the payment of interest on the exist inf deficit of the state treasury, and while the auditors report for 1914 did not show the deficit, because no warrants had beer issued by him, still the indebtedness was there for which the legislature authorized the issuance of warrants
 Only one month has passed since the be- ginning of the new fiscal year of 1915 1916, and q comparison of the states ob ligations maturing that month with tht warrants issued by the auditor for tn. corresponding month of 1914 may be o interest. Warrants issued in October 1914 and those which matured but not issued amounted to s1,35S,245 The expenses of the state for October. 1915, includin. all obligations maturing, amounted t, $1, 1,1S7,749.71 Y, leaving difference in fayo of October of the present fiscal year o $17S, 49G. 1g.
 This amount, however, does no show the true decrease in the curren expenses of the government, becaus, there are several of the contingent ap
 propriations referred to as released and the auditors warrants issued dur
 ing October. 1914, but by deductin,
 the amount of the contingent appro
 priations for which the auditors war
 rants were issued in 1914 and deduct
 ing furthermore from the total ex
 penses of October for both years tn
 amount of the appropriations to tn
 common schools and pension fund
 which vary at times (but with cer
 tain total amounts for the year fixed
 it gives a balance in reduction of ex
 penses for october, 1915 of $44,317.3s
 In this statement I am figuring onl
 on the expenses because that Is wha i is needing attention.
 REVENUE FOR OCTOBER
 The revenues of the state for Oc
 tober. 1915. from taxes were smalle
 than for October, 1914. because fewe
 taxpayers anticipated their taxes, bu
 of course the taxes will be. forthcom
 ing in future months, while expense:
 if a waste, are never recovered, excep from the lessons to be drawn fror
 profligate habits
 Should the above figures be main
 tained throughout the year, it woul | equal reduction of expenses of nor
 than $500,O00 per annum. We coul hardly hope to maintain this rati : | throughout the year, however, on ac
 count of the fixed appropriations, bu : the fact that it has been done for tn | q