Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1920-12-06

All school levies are without the
five per cent limitation
THE various, acts excepting al
school and certain road levies from
the limitations upon levies in gen.
| eral," says tha report, SHOW witt
what ease the legislatures may sci
aside laws passed by predecessors
| If a constitutional limitation coulG
be secured to fix reasonable lin.
| itations, it would be desirable to
! bring it about. Pending the adop-
| ton of such an amendment, some
| legislation is required to bring lev
les and expenditures within con
troll.
THE commissions suggestions
as to tax limitations is that all
present limitations be retained and
that within such limitations taxing
authorities should not increase to-
tai tax rates except upon adequate
representations to and approval by
the state tax commission. This
sould apply to county, incorporat-
ed city, town and village and school
district levies; and in fact to all
tax levies the object being to have
one department through which all
facts as to levies shall pass. The
fixing of the state tax rate and its
certification should be the duty of
the state tax commission rather
than the auditors"
Coming to the matter of budg-
ct, the commission divides its dis
cussion into two parts: the state
budget and the local budgets. TAX
ing up the local budgets first, the
commission shows that much Of
the trouble has been caused by al
lowing the county expenditures to
pass from state supervision and
control by limiting the power of
review of the state tax commits
sion.
The formation of local budgets
was adequately cared for between
1915 and 1919. The state tax COM
mission prepared and distributed
budget forms covering ell county
and &local budgets either by itself
or in collaboration with the state
department of education and the
state highway commission and re-
CURED such budgets properly and
fully prepared as a condition of its
consideration OF local tax levies.
Instead of strengthening the
budgetry provisions inherent in
Chapter II of the 1916 laws" says
the report subsequent legislative
acts actually weakened it," The
commission then cites the passage
of the road and school levy laws
with their exemptions. There is
now, therefore, nothing in the laws
of New Mexico effectual to guar
antee under state authority AIDE
quate fully prepared and carefully
considered local budgets or a full
review of tax levies before they be-
come effective.
THE first step toward an ade-
quate local budget system in New
Mexico requires the restoration of
the substance of Chapter "A OF the
laws of 1915. Further than that,
provision should be made for the
proper administration of the bud
get by which appropriations when
made may be controlled and limit
ed to the Expenditures authorized by
XIV p'b-'A app OBl ittIiCii'
AS to the state budget. the COM
mission voices its belief that the
state budget law which provides
the essential machinery for the
preparation of a state budget. 1t
declares that the question for New
Mexico is whether the existing law
is adequate"
In the discussion, it is pointed
out that the governor who con-
siders the items going into a bud
get might do SO from December !
on, but unless reelected he will
have no subsequent control over
the administration of the budget.
Not only, therefore, is the COVER
nor supervising the preparation of
the budget unable in his official
to see it completed. but he
is quite likely as an outgoing Of
ficial to have but little interest in
its preparation. On the contrary
his successor. who must present 1t
and administer it for the greater
part of its life. has no voice in or
control over its preparation and
the executive and legislative poll
cies inherent in it.,
The commission then points out
the necessity for sympathy and
understanding in the budget on the
part of the chief executive. 1t
feels that the incoming governor
should be the author of the con-
tents of the budget bill, should
conduct the hearings relative to it,
should determine the policy to be
followed by his office and should