Arizona republican., 1915-05-13
Where the People
May Have Hearing
THE EXPENDITURE OF STATES

Oh lHe news pdDeTS Oh lGlS STATE dpOul
what they term excessive and bur
idenscme taxation" and eXtrava gance
in the conduct of the business of
the state, and some of these news
papers have procured figures from
the secretaries of other states which
tshow a very small per capita eXpen-
idituTe in those states. With the
figures so procured they make com
PARSONS with the per capita ex-
penditure of this state which they
assert is $11.76 per capita for the
fiscal year ending June 80. 1914.
There is an adage as old as the
hills that Figures cannot lie but
we should not lose sight of the fact
| that while figures themselves cannot
or 90 not lie, the men using them
can so juggle them to entirely
mislead the public. This appears to
| have been done by the newspapers
| referred to for, as / understand ii,
the $11.76 mentioned, covers not the
| expenditure for state departments
alone, but all appropriations made
| for educational and state institutions
| as well.
l. The Statesmens Year Book for the
year 1914 gives statistics for all the
states and territories which statis-
! ties cover population according TO the
last census, and expenditures except
| in a very few instances. for the fis-
| cal year ending in 1913. with, in
many cases. the cost of education.
! The figures given for Arizona in
| these statistics are high. but as they
| cover a portion of the period when
| Arizona was a territory, they cannot
be considered criterion.
| 1t is interesting to note that the
| state of Kansas quoted as having a
| per capita expenditure of $2.37, had,
the year previous, a per capita ex-
penditure of $474. according to the
year book, but the telegram from the
| secretary of state of the state of
| Kansas does not state whether or
not the figures given by him Gov
Tered only state departments, or state
| departments, educational institutions
and other state institutions. and this
| is applicable also to several ef the
| other states quoted.
Investigation has shown that in
some of the states the appropriations
| for the state departments and for
! the educational and other state in
stitutions. are contained in separate
! appropriation bills. and the per CAPT
| ia expenditures for these institutions
do not, therefore, appear in the cost
of the state departments. as is the
| case in Arizona where we have. but
one appropriation bill.
The state of Oregon, for instance.
| is quoted as having a per capita ex-
Lense of $3.50 for each of the years
| 1913 and 1914 but this per capita
! cost cannot and does not include cost
I'm
tions. for in the year 1913 the sum
! Of S6456638 was spent in that state
for educational purposes. There We're
2E2.19O pupils enrolled in the public.
| high and normal schools, which
makes the cost for each pupil $25.G0
for the year. Taking the same
amount, s6,456,63S. and dividing ii
| by the population of Oregon. 100000,
would make a per capita eXpendi-
ture for education alone of $S.O7, 50
ii is very plain that the papers re-
ferred to have been very careful not
to secure figures which would give
the true state of affairs in oregon.
Again, the Statesman's Year Book
from which these figures are quoted,
states that Oregon, in the months OF
July, August and September, 1913,
expended $1,365, 401.00. These figures
multiplied by four would give the
approximate expenditures for the
year, So, $1,000. and this sum div
ided by 100000, OregOn's population,
makes a per capita expense of APP
proximately $3.50. If this per capita
expense is added to the per capita
expense for education, making total
of $14.S7, AriZona's per capita eX-
pense Of $1I.76, sinks into insignifi-
canoe.
Again, the papers referred to are
careful to give the population of Arr
iona as it is given by the census of
1910, namely, 204,354, and the popu-
lation of Oregon as it is today BY
the census of 1910 Oregon had
population of 672, 765, and if it's per
capita expense is figured on that
basis, it would be s17.71 for the year
1913, instead of $14S7.
Reversing this process, and giving
Arizona the benefit of her increase
in population since 1910, which in
crease can safely be estimated at
about 100, 900, which would make her
population today about 100000, we
find that dividing the total expendi-
lures from July l, 1913, to June 80,
1914, $2,345, 129.77, as given in the
papers referred to, by the estimated
population of today, the per capita
expenditure is reduced to $3.50. which
amount compares very favorably with
the expenditures of even our oldest
and largest states.
| do not know that you will be
willing to print this communication,
but hope that in the interests of
fairness and justice you will do so,
and if so, and you will give me
the space, it will afford me pleasure
to give you full information as to
expenses in all the western and cas-
tern states as far as the statistics go.
ANALYST.
Phoenix, May IL, 1915.