The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1919-01-21
NOT NEEDED HERE
SchOch Tax Levy Raise Unnec-
cessary in Topeka.
CITY Officials Can Raise Plenty
Under Laws.

I The new Schoch bill introduced in
the senate providing a new tax levy
maximum affecting cities of between
| 5000 and 10000 would include To-
peka. The maximum tax levy pro-
vides for the following levy scale:
General fund, 6 mills. so per cent in
crease over the present levy for the
general fund of mills: water. 1 mill;
judgments, u mill; parks, n mills:
| library u mill; light. 6-10 of mill.
| and bridges. u mill. The present levy
! in Topeka is as follows: General fund.
, 4 mills; special fund. mills; in the
special fund the levies are. according
| to departments: Water. is: there
have been no levies for judgments for
several years: parks. ATS; library,
ZIP; light. is; bridges, ABA.
According to Commissioner WATSON
| levy of mills is now the limit on
the general fund but this is not true
| of the special fund. The levies are
based on a valuation on the city of
$63,000.000. OF the levy based on this
| amount s252,000 goes to the general
fund Under the proposed new law
the amou.-t could be increased S126.-
| 900, making a total of $37S,OOO in the
general fund. The same thing would
be true of the special fund. The city
| would raise $252,000 more than at
present If the budgets should call for
| the maximum amount allowed by the
new law.
| Commissioner WATSON could make
no statement on the water levy under
| the proposed legislation but said that
at present the city really had no water
tax. A water levy of Is Of a mill goes
| to water interest.
Not Needed Here.
| In the opinion of city authorities
| the proposed law is not needed in To-
| peka as they hold that the city has
been well managed on the present levy
of 8 mills Among the things that
| have been done for the betterment and
Improvement of the city the following
| things are mentioned: $4,000 for
Ripley park; $4,000 spent on the tub
erculosis sanatorium; $4,000, comfort
station; $3,200, swimming pool; $1,000
| to clean up the debt on the pipe Or
gan; the charity fund has been in
creased from nothing to s6,so0 year;
a 40 per cent increase in the wages
| of city employees has been instituted
more than 100000 has been spent on
| bridges in the last five years and the
city now has $4,000 for expenditure
| in that purpose and by July LIST will
| have practically twice that amount
which will go into bridge construc-
ton; $4,000 will be spent on the
| parks in the coming year, the new
legislation would make it possible to
increase the park fund to $4,000;
four times as much money has been
spent during the last year for the
health of the city than ever before
$4,000 a month has gone into the
emergency hospital work.
Altho it is agreed that any city
commission could put the additional
money to invaluable use i'll adding inn
provements to the city, il would mean
that taxes which are already high
woul be practically doubled. Attic
| the tax rate in the city has not been
changed since 1915. they are higher
now than ever before, as valuations
| have jumped considerably higher
1t is held that 1t would be impossible
for a large number of people to be
financially able to carry the addi-
| tional burden of added taxes when
the strain now is so great that hun
dreds of people are having difficulty
in meeting the demands upon their
pocketbooks.
The proposed bill does not NEAR
! that the levies should be immediate
jumped to meet the maximum limit
/ but provides for that contingency
should it become desira BILE to do so.
1t seems that the bill was intro
| duced primarily with a view to pro-
| viding means of meeting the de.
mands mads upon various cities by
their fire departments in an effort t.
secure higher wage scales. The pro
posed bill would provide a way in
which cities would have the money tt
go further into the fireman contro-
versy if they should decide that it wa.