New-York tribune., 1919-09-05
City Uniformed
Men to Query
Public ON Raise
Police and Fire Forces to
Sound Sentiment of Tax
payers; City-Wide Cam
paign Begins Next Week
Coal Is 1920 Budget
Will Have Six Weeks to
Prove Justice of Case
to Board of Estimate

Next week the city's patrolmen and
firemen will open an active campaign
for more pay.
The Patrolmcn's Benevolent Associa-
tion which is conducting the patrol
mems campaign, will hold a meeting on
Tuesday at Mannerchor Hall, at whch
the plans for the campaign will be dis
cussed
On the same date the Uniformed
Firemeh's Association will meet at the
associations headquarters, on the
fourth floor Of the World Building
Each association will plan its own
campaign, but both will follow similar
lines. The patrolmen will receive re-
ports from cry police precinct in the
city, showing the attitude of the tax
paying public toward the movement.
The data upon which these reports will
be based are being collected by patrol
men everywhere. In this respect the
patrOlmen have an advantage over the
men of the Fire Department.. Police
duties bring the men into close per-
sonal contact with the citizens, and
they are advantageous placed to feel
out public sentiment toward the move
ment.
Upon the reports thus received the
plan OF campaign to be adopted will
be fashioned: In any event a pub
licity movement will be started which
will aim to bring the facts of exist
ing conditions before the people. Ad-
dresses will be made before tax asso-
Citations and other civic organizations
Prominent citizens will be enlisted in
aid Of the cause.
The Campaign Executives
Patrick Moran, president Of the ?.
3. A., will! conduct the patrolmcn's
fight The direction of the firemen's
campaign will fall upon Albert GUM
ness, president Of the Uniformed Fire
mems Association.
Petitions on behalf Of the patrolmen
and the tremen are being prepared.
and will be presented this week to
Commissioner Enright. in the case of
the patrolmcn, and to Commissioner
brennan by the frcmen, with a request
IN each case for favorable considera-
ton, and recommendation to the Board |
of Estimate. Copies of these petitions
will also be sent to the Board of |
Estimate.
1t is possible that the Board Of Esti-
mate may refuse to receive these petit
tions directly from the interested bod
les rule recently introduced by the |
board forbids the forwarding of such |
petitions save through the Commits |
sioncr, or other head Of the depart
ment concerned. The tiremen claim
that this rule is already obsolete, hav-
Estimate in the case of a previous pc
tition presented by the men of the
Fire Department. Both Fire and Po- |
lice Commissioners will be petitioned |
in order to offset the possibility of |
delay through any technicality.
1t is expected that both petitions
viii be referred by the Board of Es- |
innate either to the Committee on
Finance or the Committee on Salaries !
and Grades
1920 Budget the Goal
The policemen and firemen want
their proposed salary increases includ
ed in the 1920 city budget. the prelim-
mary stage of which is already being
completed by one city department after
another in the submission of wha,
are termed departmental estimates.
The police and fire requests have not
been received yet. By October 20 the
Board of Estimate must act upon these
estimates and embody its action in a
volume known as the proposed budget
But once the proposed budget is in
existence the doom of all salary in
creases in the budget is sealed, for
from October 20 to 81 the board can
only reduce or eliminate, but can make
no upward revision of item or amount.
On October 81 the third budget stage,
known as tho "iinal' budget. is
reached. Thereafter the Board OF AL
dcrmen, which has only power to re-
ducc, and even that Is restricted, con-
slders the budget and turns it over to
tn" Mayor with recommendation for
adoption with or without reductions.
he Mayors veto Of the budget can
be overridden by three quarter vote
IN the Board, of Aldermen
II the advanced rates are provided
for BY the boards decision on or before
October 20 it is not considered proh
able that either the Board Of Aldermen
or tho Mayor Will attempt to tamper
with the Increases. IT, on the other
hand, the board fails to adopt the in
creased rates on or before October 90
It means that patrolmens and fircmen's
pay for the next Year will remain at q
maXlmuA of 81 $50 year, unless after
the 1920 budget goes into effect on
january | next the Board Of Estimate
giants raise by amendatory reso!u-
tion.
Assuming that the taxpayers support
these requests, that they are requested
by the commissioners of the depart
ment> concerned for inclusion in their
budgets, that they are approved by the
board Of Estimate. passed by the
Board of Aldermen and sanctioned bv
the Mayor. no fireman or patrolman
can be penny better off before Janu-
ary l6, 1920, when the first payment at
the higher rate would be made
81 Nq2, Fined GO E.ob