Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1919-12-10
WANT HOME RULE
IN CONSTITUTION
conneIIy, Head of Municipal Af-
fairs Committee, Asks Wider
Latitude in City Government
WOULD ALTER CREDIT PLAN
Hp a stnG corrcsrondcnl

7V stat .correFpoudcu
Harrisburg, Pa, Dec, 10.-ThC hOm'
xule question. affecting Philadelphia, is
Germs of the constitutional revision com
mission In session here.
City Solicitor John +. Connolly, who
is spokesman for the commissioners
committee handling municipal affairs. is
urging upon his associates an omen
door to greater Philadelphia.
The keynote of Mr.. Copnelly's argu
ment is municipal borrowing capacity
based upon the same principles as the
credit OF great commercial concern.
1.-THE idea is based upon the assets
sand liabilities Of n municipal corpora
ton" said Mr.. Connolly today. in out
lining his views. "The question con
Germs the grading of the borrowing
capacities Of cities of the first. second
and third classes. and just what can be
allowed to q city, township or county
by the constitution rs loan basis that
will operate to the greatest benefit of
the larger cities.
"Cities like Philadelphia have great
er needs and they should have n wider
latitude, founded upon their greater
aseessable values, than smaller
municipality. For instance, we may
advocate II per cent for cities of the
FIRST class, which means Philadelphia.
Pittsburgh. as a second class city, may
be allowed 10 per cent. while Scranton.
as third class city, may be limited to,
say per cent of its taxable real estate.
But, as I say. this grading is II difficult
question to adjust and affects the whole
subject Of taxation.
Serial Loan Question
''The serial loan is another question
OF legislation affecting Philadelphia
that we have to consider. Loans for
improvements that are built under guar
antee to last 100 years should be
negotiated for a longer term than those
intended for improvements less durable.
but elassed as permanent for loan pur
poses. This proposition has n vital bear
ing on sinking funds and calls for con
sideration of those sections governing
them
Another suggestion we have before
US deals with n phase of the metro
politan area proposed for philadcl-
phia. This plan would place sectional
taxes on those outlyiug portions of Il
city or it's suburbs which by reason OF
a bridge or highway for instance,
benefit many years in advance of their
actual needs
1.-THE home rule application to cities
should be made wide, and municipalities
should enjoy powers to tax concurrent
with those of the. state to the highest
degree, within reasonable bounds. They
should be limited so that there can be
no roughshod taxation.
Provost Smith. of the University of
pennsylvania chairman of the COM
mittee on which Mr.. Connolly is
concurred in the views Of his
associate. II sat under MI Con
neily's lecture" he added
Speed Not Object
Though the commission is TO meet
three times a day, three days in the
week. aud to devote all these sessions
to business, there is no disposition
among the members to finish the job
ir a hurry and go home"
Attorney General Schaffer and his
colleagues announce that they mean
business but are going about that
business in businesslike way.
The commissioners today settled down
to receive the first reports of the FIVE
committees to which the gigantic task
Of framing n new code of government
has been entrusted.
Every member of the commission has
an allotted share in the work of con-
struction and revision and there is not
one shirker in the lot.
One of the first matters taken up by
the commission today WAS to instruct
the secretary, William Draper Lewis
to obtain copies of the constitution of
every state IL the union. These codes
will be studied in detail. not for pur-
poses of imitation, but for the sugges-
'tions they may offer in constructive
ideas.
Not the least active of the committee
workers are Mrs. Barclay II. War
burton and Mrs. John o. Miller. the
women members. Mrs. Warburton at
tended the sessions of the committee on
municipal affairs, and Mrs. Miller was
equally energetic in the deliberations Of
the committee assigned to suffrage, cleo
tions and public Offices.