Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1917-07-03

many people with ready cash, some
merchants and some banks, by their
own admissions are escaping taxation
on millions of dollars, while land values
1 more uniformly are being taxed at their
/ real worth.
INEQUALITIES SHOULD BE
REMOVED BY LEGISLATION.
Some legislation amendatory of exist
/ ing laws should speedily be enacted to
/ remedy these inequalities.
But / shall not burden you with a de-
tailed discussion at this time of what
1 deem TO be proper methods to I'M
cover invisible property for taxation.
/ l shall discuss the matter in detail in
my message.
A reform in connection with our fnan-
/ ces. l suggest. should begin with
I change in your rules, which L respectful
/ ly submit, should provide for a finance
committee. into which your ways and
means committees and the appropria-
tions committee of the house should be
merged, this committee to be charged
with the duties of both those commit
/ tees. the inevitable result of which will
/ be a report in which expenditures will
| harmonic with available funds.
If this finance committee should put
/ itself in the attitude of appropriating
more money than can reasonably be an
L AAElpdAcus anu the ECllCA al 0SoNhAbAS AA
/ conformity with this report should
| make appropriations in excess of avail
able funds, then commission, or
board, which 1 shall discus later should
| be established by your body, and en-
powered to scale each and every ap-
preparation by whatever per cent is
/ necessary to equalize appropriations
/ with revenues, provided, of course, that
no appropriations to pay the principal
I ,F -, Ito 1ahf he
| thus affected.
School teachers and Confederate vet
Grams should not be delayed in receiv-
| ing their pay while legislators and 9TH
er officials are promptly paid in full.
The practice of kiting, resorted to in
some previous administrations, apply
| ing taxes of one year to the payment
| of appropriations of a previous year,
I is unconstitutional and illegal, and
should cease. and the first step in this
much needed reform of our fiscal af-
I fairs lies within your power to initiate.
This suggested plan of controlling ex-
cessive appropriations can, / think. be
made of service before the disburse-
ments of any appropriations have been
made for the year 1918, and need not
interfere with the adoption of some one
of the budget methods which are found
to work so well in other states, and the
consideration of which by your body
would undoubtedly be profitable.
RECoSrMENDs CREATION
OF EFFICIENCY COMMISSION.
advise the creation of an efficiency
commission, or board of coptrol-utiliz-
/ ing existing state officials-the gov
ernor. comptroller general, treasurer and
attorney general-and completing the
commission by the addition of an audi
! tor. to be appointed by the governor.
/ This is the only office with salary at
/ tached that think should be created AT
I this time The duties Of the auditor,
under direction of the commission.
would be numerous Through the COM
mission-the work being done chiefly by
/ the auditor civil service system for
state capitol employees can be establish
/ ed: purchases by various state institu-
/ tions audited and checked, If not made,
/ through him; state revenues passing
/ through the collecting agencies of the
counties whence the state gets the larg-
est proportion of it's revenues, can be
4 investigated and checked in cooperation
with the counties and money saved for
such service to the counties. The entire
accounting system of the state can be
/ regulated and systematized and county
systems made uniform and harmonious.
/ The state printing, now unchecked as to
/ specifications or amount expended, can
be audited.
| The state can be saved much money,
| and plans easily developed whereby eff
cheney and simplicity will supplant the
cumbersome methods now too often
used.
! The auditor would earn any salary
/ YOU would pay If. under his supervision,
all revenues of the state, from whatever
| source derived, should first be covered
\ into the state treasury and then dis
| bursed upon proper warrant signed by
I the executive, instead of permitting in
spectOrs and other officials to account
I for net revenues from their depart
ments, after deducting expenses of ad-
/ ministration.
The state superintendent of schools
/ and a majority of the educators of our
/ state are Of the opinion that some plan
/ should be devised for local taxation in
! The interest of our educational system,
and that the county should be the basis
therefor Some local assistance, within
/ reasonable limitations, should be de-
/ manded and more permitted and on cas-
l Ter terms than is possible under the law
as IL now is This would be a progress
7 sive step. While IL would require a con.
/ stitutional amendment, provision for the
submission of such to the people for
ratification or rejection should be made
{ at this session. Whenever a county is
/ made to bear more directly and imme-
diately- the responsibility for the educa-
/ ton OF its children. more money will be
/ had for that purpose. and We will, conse-
I quently. have more and better educd-
. ton.
Heretofore appropriations for com
mon school maintenance and support
I have consumed two and quarter mills
I of the constitutional limit of five mills,
I and IT is very improbable that any sub
/ stantial increase of such appropriations
\ can reasonably be expected. TINS sug-
gested amendment comes from the
I friends OF the public schools and of edu-
cation. There should be no fear that
I the common schools under this plan will
I receive less money than heretofore. It's
\ advocates assert that IL all the counties
\ will do their duty-and we should legis-
/ late on the idea that they will-many
{ improvements can he made Immediately.
/ Few states appropriate more money
I TO educational purposes than Georgia,
I and in most, where the funds are larger
and educational facilities superior, To-
I cal taxation Is universally found.
/ DECLARES THE STATE SHOULD
/ FURNISH FREE TEXTBOOKS.