The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1916-08-17
SHOWS SAVING FOR COUNTY
Reports from State Records Show Vast
Reduction of Taxes Paid in Kenosha
County as a Result of Business Ad-
ministration Of State Affairs.

Every voter in Kenosha county is
going to receive personal message
from the governor of the state giving
an account of his stewardship. The
first of the series of thousands of mes
sages from Governor E. L. Philip
reached Kenosha this morning and the
statement is a long one. 1t is not
"defense" of the administration but
a statement from official records of
just what has been done in Wisconsin
during the past two years under the
regime of Governor Philip.
There has been no effort to make Of
it campaign document more than to
present the facts to the people. Gov
ernor Philip starts in his big task
of telling the people by showing how
efforts were made to load the state
budget at the legislature of 1915 in
an effort to make impossible the reduc-
tion of state taxes He shows that the
budget, after much opposition, was
hammered down until it was nearly
four million dollars less than that of
the former legislature. He shows that
the first state tax levy made under his
administration with the exception Of
the one thousand dollar techniacl levy
went into the fund for educational
purposes. He shows that all of the
bills of the state were promptly paid
during the past two years even with
greatly reduced tax levies. He dis
cussess emergency statutes passed by
the last legislature and gives consider
able time to the discussion of efforts
which were made to obstruct legisla-
ton on the part of certain "Progres-
sives' with a view Of diBcrediting the
administration. He shows the great
savings made to the state by the
elimination of much work by the Con
servation Commission and the central
ling of such work as appeared to be
meritorius in the hands of few state
agents. He showed the saving that had
been made by the reduction of the
number Of coil Inspectors employed.
The state printing board is given no
tice and the Governor shows that
economy practiced by the members of
this board saved the state some eighty
thousand dollars in single year.
He showed that millions of dollars
had been expended for permanent
buildings for the state and that this
work had been done at a saving. He
showed that the state debt had been
greatly reduced. He showed the value
of the Central Board of Education and
of the increased value Of schools in the
rural districts asa result of the state
aiding in the paying of better and
more teachers.
He discussed the state university and
shows that under the present admins
tration the university has not suffered
but has advanced sensibly along all
lines. Several pages are given over to
the discussion of the state highway
problem in which the Governor shows
that the highway work is being
standardized under the plan of the adj
ministration and permanent roads be-
ing built rapidly but not so rapidly as
to make the building of the roads a
hardship to the people. He shows that
insurance rates have been reduced in
every city in Wisconsin as a result of
wise Interpretation of the insurance
laws, that food and dairy products
have been protected better than ever
before and at a less cost to the state.
for the protection. He discusses at
some length his appointments to public
offices and declares that in every case
the only thing that dictated the APP
pointment of men to commissions
was their qualification to fill the place
in question.
The real rub Of the report Of the
Governor to the people of the state SO
far as Kenosha county is concerned, is
to be found in the statement Of the
comparative tax levies made on this
county during the past three years.
Under the McGovern administration in
1913, the assessment of state taxes
against Kenosha county was 1922, $780,
"a. A year later while Mr.. McGovern
was still in Office, the assessment
against this county was $87,178.63.
The tax levy of 1915 for Kenosha
county under the Philip administra-
tion was $74,518.87. This shows a
saving over the first McGovsrn admin
istration was $74,518.87. This shows
a saving over the first McGovern adj
ministration of $48,262.o7 and over
the second McGovern tax levy of
ST., 659.76.
These figures are verified by refer
ence to the tax levies for the state as
on file in the office of the county clerk.