The daily banner. (Cambridge, Md.) 1897-2008, 1920-06-29
WHAT IT COSTS TO RUN
The COUNTY A YEAR
County Commissioners Estimate That
1t Will Cost 1926, 1856 To Meet
The Expenses Of Dorchester Coun-
ty During The Present Fiscal Year.

Running the affairs of a business
corporation as large as those of Dor
chester county is not altogether the
easy matter that many persons think
The expenditures of Dorchester
county for the fiscal year starting
May LIST, 1920 and ending April 30th
1921 are estimated to amount to
1926, 1855.
Bearing that amount in mind,
1926, 1855, stop and consider how
a business corporation doing that
much business would operate. There
would be president, vice-presidept,
secretary. treasurer and board of
directors. Probably one of these
officers would be the manager, if not
there would be a manager who
would be on the job all of the time.
At the County Commissioners office,
the Commissioners meet every other
Tuesday and are in session a few
hours. The County Treasurer mere
ly collects and disburses the cash;
he represents the credit department
of the average corporation, having
no part in the operating department.
The Clerk 10 the County Commits
sioners performs clerical services,
keeping a record of the minutes of
the meeting, indeXing and arranging
the bills to be presented at their
meetings, these bills TO be arranged
according to the Commissioner dis
tricts, which means that each Com
| missioner looks after the affairs of
several districts, the county being
divided into three such districts.
| The clerk to the Commissioners is
the bookkeeper, he also has no
authority to interfere with the OPP
Grating depart -nent.
The Tax Supervisor looks after the
assessments of property, the sales OF
real estate, is supposed 20 make a
record of public and private sales,
so that the sale value" may be COM
| pared with the assessed value, with
| the idea of using the sales as the
| basis for assessment purposes, this
| being the purpose of the State Tax
| Commission, namely, to get an equal
| lied assessment bass all over the
State based upon actual sales values
rather than owners values for as
! SesSment purposes" The Tax Super
visor has no connection with the
operating department.
But someone asks, what is meant
by the Cooperating Department?
The Operating Department consists
of the men who plan the work to be
done, the expending of the money,
the building of roads, maintenance
of roads and bridges, etc. In the
case of Dorchester County the Oper-
ating Department, which is compos-
ed of the County Commissioners,
will eXpend 1926, 1856 5 during The
present fiscal year.
| Naturally enough the question
arises, how is this money expended?
The largest factor in the expenses
is that of roads and bridges, $l22,-
! 63065 having been levied for this
| purpose, the items being $74,33O. 6 S
for ordinary roads, which is taken
to mean shell and dirt roads; 500
| 600 was levied for New Shell Roads;
$4,000 was levied for bridges; 81
! 900 for Ferries and $4,000 for the
| TayIors Island State road. The
largest item of this expense is the
ordinary roads, 4,330.65 is to be
spent this year for the maintenance
and up-keep' of the ordinary roads
of the county. The county has no
Road Engineer, no single person to