Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1919-12-04
CHARTER BATTLE
. ON FINANCE CLAUSE
City Solicitor conneIly's Ruling
on Sinking Fund Said to
Reveal "Joker"
MAY CARRY CASE TO COURT

A battle impends over the finance
clauses Of the new city charter. on the
| outcome of which the financial we'll
being of the city will depend for q
long time to come.
That is the situation today ms viewed
by supporters Of Philadelphia new
| fundamental law who are aroused over
City Solicitor Connelly's ruling on the
sinking funds.
The law officers opinion virtually
swept away the charter provision for
Thea retirement of city debts through
moneys in the sinking fund. Legal
action, which may be carried to the
State Supreme Court, is expected tc
develop.
|. Hits Connelly's Opinions
The city solicitor has never vet been
upheld by the courts ID his opinions on
the new charter, declared John c.
Winston this morning.
| Mr.. Winston, as chairman of the
Philadelphia charter committee guided
the general work of revising the mu
nicipal government which was stamped
with the approval of the Legislature
and the Governor.
| Friends of Mayor elect Moore today
| expressed a belief that the city solici
| tors ruling has uncovered the long
suspected Joker" in the new charter
| finance section.
In the preliminary study of Mr.. Con
| lt,nl lv-ic Ayn;., l., III Al. Al.
of the situation is in this quotation:
II also think that the sinking funC
commissioners are to be the Judges
whether it shall be impracticable OF
financially disadvantageous to purchase
the bonds of particular issue with ac
foundations in the sinking fund there
of, or to invest temporarily in the other
enumerated securities.
Based on Charter Quotation
This is apparently based on the fol
lowing quotation from the new charter
Whenever there shall be money in
| the sinking fund in respect of a par
ticular debt in excess of the require
ments for the payment during the
| twelve months next ensuing, for prin
| cipal maturing and interest due, such
excess money shall be applied to the
purchase and cancellation of such debt
but if at any time it shall be imprac
ticable or financially Instantaneous
| to purchase such debt such excess
money may be invested temporarily in
bonds or other evidences of debt. etc
Those close to the new administration
learned that it was felt that a public
service had been done by the Bureau
Of Municipal Research in bringing this
| Joker in the new charter into the
sharpest kind of relief by forcing the
sinking fund commission to call on
| City Solicitor Connolly for an opin =
ion. This action on the part of the
commission was forced by the bureau S
demand that the section of the new
charter permitting cancellation be made
| operative at once.
Officials Held Responsible
This "joker," it is held, would have
never existed and no ground would
have been available for further shooting
holes in the new charter had not Con :
nelly, Walton and Schaffen' in the
language of Director Gutenberg, of the
bureau. ripped out sections of the
charter that would have allowed the city
a modern system of financing"
In criticism of the city solicitor s
opinion Mr.. Gutenberg said Mr.. Con :
nelly dealt only with loans issued prior
TO July 25, 1919.
Explanation BY Gutenberg
1.-The arguments set forth in his opin-
ion can have no applicability whatever
to loans issued after that date" Mr..
Gutenberg said. "The general position
taken by the city solicitor is not unex-
pected, for it is one which was given
weighty consideration by the bureau in
the formulation of its letter and plan
for the sinking fund commissioners.
Mr.. Gutenberg, citing Supreme
Court decisions, criticized at length the
point made by Mr.. Connolly that the
money going into the sinking fund is
an inviolable pledge.
Another suggestion brought forward
by Gutenberg. that serial bonds be
issued, is ignored by the city solicitor,
the director asserts.
Mr.. Connelly's opinion was forward
ed to the sinking fund commissioners,
who are the Mayor; John NJ. Walton,
city controller, and u. T. Stotesbury
Friends of the new administration
also made it plain that they see in this
and other early interpretative opinions
on the new charter handed down before
the Moore administration and the Moore
city solicitor get in the saddle, move
ment to start the building of a body of
interpretative opinion which will not
meet with the approval of the advocates
of the new charter.
In other words body of opinion is
being set up, it is argued, which, later
on, will be referred to as precedent, the
fatal fetch of law.
One of the chief works of the new
city solicitor, working in harmony with
Mayor Moore, will be the task of tear
ing down this early structure and
creating new structure which will
progress with the progress of the Moore
administration. City Solicitor desig
nate Smyth has announced that hi
policy will be one of loyalty to tn,
spirit of the new charter.