Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1919-11-07
THE HIGH COST OF
BAD GOVERNMENT
Every Citizen Is Likely to Pay the Pen
atty Next Year for Consenting
to Evils This Year

terest of the bidders for the bonds, ends
in way to affect every renter and every
houseowner in the community.
The Tenants Protective Associations,
which have been fighting the rental
profiteers, will have to take the Supreme
Court decision into account in their
future campaigns.
And here is the reason
Part of the money to be raised by the
bond issues was to be used for the repair
of streets, fireboats, public buildings and
such like current expenses. The new
charter provides that no bonded debt
may be incurred to pay current expenses.
The section dealing with this matter
went into effect before the bond issue was
authorized. 1t was assumed that it did
not yet apply to such loan as was pro-
posed. But the court has said that the
city may not borrow any money to pay
current expenses.
The money needed for the repair of
streets and buildings must now be raised
by a tax. Because Councils have de-
clined for years to provide the amount
needed for these purposes bonds have
been issued to meet the deficit in current
expenses. Several millions are needed to
make the repairs which have been neg
lected during the war. This money must
be raised by tax next year.
In other words, burden properly be-
longing to last year and this year will be
unloaded on the city next year.
1t is difficult to see how the sum can
be raised without an increase in the tax
rate. If the rate is raised the landlords
will hand on the extra burden to their
tenants and the houseowners who occupy
their own property will have to pay it
anyway.
The new administration is doomed to
suffer for the sins of the present Coun
ellis. The time when the politicians can
fool the people into believing that public
business is conducted economically has
come to an end.
1t is no longer possible to keep the tax
rate down by borrowing money to pay
bills.
The charter requires the new Council
to raise by tax each year all that is
needed to pay the expenses of that year,
save for permanent improvements. 1t
| cannot borrow for repairing streets or
| for repaving them. Nor can it borrow
| for making repairs to police stations or
fire houses or fire apparatus.
The Mayor has been in consultation
with the heads of departments in the
hope of finding a way to prevent the dis
missal of two or three hundred employees
for whose payment there is now no
money. But these employees are in de-
| partments spending money for perma-
nent improvements. No suggestion has
been made that there be reduction in
the force of departments where there is
not work enough to keep the clerks busy
Every one familiar with conditions in
the City Hall knows that many hundred
thousand dollars year go to clerks who
hold their jobs by political favor They
are not expected to do much. They are
part of the political machine.
The first duty of the new Mayor will
be to overhaul all the offices in the City
Hall over which he has any control anc
weed out the dead wood and put the de-
partments on a business basis. If he does
this as thoroughly as it should be done
he can reduce the burden on the Taxpayer
and improve the efficiency of every de
partment. He may displease a few poll
tcians in the process, but he will CRAFTY
the great mass of the public.
The conditions which he will inherit
from the present administration will
make it easy for him to introduce re
forms in the City Hall. His administra
| |;oY will houn n 20 he h,,, fNfJ
for current expenses left by the presen
administration. He can say to the me,
who object to his reorganizations: "Gen
tlemen, you have mismanaged the affair
of the city in such way that there il
nothing left for me to do but to cut eX
penses down to the bone. There is Ger
tain work which must be done and w
must have the money with which to pa,
for it. There is only so much none,
available and we must use it first fo
what is imperative"
There can be no answer to such re
marks save that he should raise the ta
rate and let the old conditions continue
That is what would have happehed i
there had not been an overturn in tn
control of the city government last Tues
day.
The city is expecting from Mr.. Moor
a radically different kind of conduct o
, public business from that to which tn
city has been accustomed. Certai
abuses will be brought to an end ah
; ruptly as soon as all the provisions O
, the new charter go into effect. Other
will disappear if Mr., Moore fulflls tn
expectations Of those who nominated an
elected him.
Current expenses will be paid out @
; current revenues because the charter er
joins it.
City Hall clerks will abandon a
. political activities because participatio
in party affairs is made a misdemeano
Public business will no longer be dc
. layed until two chambers of Council
can come to an agreement, for the ney