The news scimitar. (Memphis, Tenn.) 1907-1926, 1919-11-14

finances before the close of tho present
yeaA 50 that the new administration
MI ht ave hoine 6efinite facts on which
TO begin work With tha beRinnihk 81 tue
new year. Tkat may have also been ii
some effect IN suggesting 10 the pFeNeIlt
administration that the members ought
to have every departments books and
records in shape for turning them over
with clean slate Jan L.
Mason Urges Change.
This proposed change In the methods
OF the department Of finance and reve-
nues is due to A ID, Mason, who was the
head OF that department for nearly a
year The changes have been suggested
from time to time during the past five
years by auditors, by citizens commit
tees, and by various gentlemen who
have held the office OF commissioner OF
finance and revenues, but have never
been put into practice.
Why such IL business-hke proceeding
has not been adopted long ago Is one
Of those numerous political mysteries
which abound In municipal politics,
Why annual financial reports Of the
city should be delayed from the first
Of the year until June, July or August,
no one has risen to satisfactorily ex-
plain,
The delay Is admittedly unbusiness-
Ike and has resulted year after year
in making the annual department osti-
mates six months or more after half
the annual revenues had been spent,
The city charter also contains GER
tain provisions requiring the publica-
tlon Of quarterly financial statements
of the city, as well as annual state
ments, but this law has also been more
honored in the breach than In the OBJ
servancc, The idea has seemed to pre-
vail at the city hall for some years that
no one reads these reports, except pos
sibly few bankers, and that therefore
II Ia a useless expense to compile and
publish them,
Comes now Mr. Mason with an or
dinance, approved by the mayor and
other commissioners, which makes II
the law that both efficiency and
promptness must rule hereafter In the
preparation of departmental budget es-
tiiuatee, and that the budget estimates
for the entire city must be submitted
by tho mayor to the commission by
Dec "a, each year.
Estimates in Early.
The city clerk a month previous.
I1y, or by Nov. 20, OF each year. must
| furnish blanks to heads Of each de-
partment and subdepartme for. max,
| Ing out the estimated budget, and must
supply them At the same time WIN
statement OF the annual appropriation
| for each bureau. and the amount ex-
| pended up to Oct. 81.
The estimates from bureau and de-
partment heads must set forth In de-
| tail the proposed regular and special
expenditures contemplated during the
| coming year and must liEt each en-
ploye, with his duties, pay and service
performed, That viii be one OF the
most complete Innovations .contemplat
ed and should throw considerable light
on causes for the heavy increase in the
expenses of some departments during
the past year or two.
The ordinance requires that the city
clerk shall Publish the annual financlal
statement not later than Feb, !. each
wear and that the annual budget or
dinance must be passed not later than
March 5, the tax rate ordinance being
passed on the same date.
All of which will be. in the. vernacu"
lar. fine bus ness, and exactly In line
with some OF the methods which ROW.
lett Paine and the other candidates OF
the citizens League stated during their
campaign that they proposed to IN
augurate in the city hall after the first
Of the year