Perth Amboy evening news., 1921-04-21
MORE LIGHT ON
AUDIT REPORT
Letter of R. F. Carroll to So.
Amboy Common Council
Is Given in Full.

SOOIH Is April Zl:-fup-
lie opinion in South Amboy is very
much divided as the result of the
disclosures made by the city's audi
tor, r. +. Carroll, at the regular
meeting of the Common Council on
Tuesday night. A number of per-
ions who were 10 at the meeting
and got the story second-handed, in
many instances have formed wrong
opinions. Mr.. Carroll being a local
man and familiar with the men
criticized in the letter submitted to
The council, has been placed in a
very peculiar position and has been
accused of bringing personalities
into the report. On the other hand
the same misinformed parties are
of the opinion that the city's money
has been Incorporated.
In order to correct this false
opinion the EVENING NEWS sub
mits a detailed report of the letter
as follows:
In proving the collectors cash
W. found he has cash on hand not
turned over to the treasurer amount
ing to $~2,764.55. This includes his
collections, $~2,592.S0. for the last
day of the year, not depositea to the
credit of his account; cash now in
safe, $3.50, the source of receipt of
which was not ascertained; and
miscellaneous items of cash which
he could not account for, evidently
arising from neglect to credit taxes
paid to him by the people of the
municipality.
THE collector, who is a very good
clerk. evidently did not know the
laws regulating his office. as laid
down by the Department of Munici-
mol ArnDnrfr hnnn,tcp 10 hn IiI hn
would endeavor to collect some of
the outstanding taxes, by either ac-
tual collection of the money due, or
by selling the assets of the taxpayer
who owed the city: and also. he
would have regularly rendered an
account of his office to the governing
body.
IF you will peruse schedules of
taxes outstanding December 81,
1921, you will find there is due the
city for property and poll taxes the
sum of $47,551.73, covering the
period from 1914 to 1920 inclusive.
aud besides, we refer you to the
schedules showing water taxes I'M
paid amounting to s9,S42.57, and
other schedules of delinquent taxes.
I'm checking the accounts of the
collector it was noted that the dupli-
~ WIZ WHY ilia1i
The assessors who compiled the
duplicates are very poor writers, and
evidently know little or nothing
about real estate values in the city
of South Amboy, considering the n
equal apportionment of comparative
assessments between different prop
erty holders.
1T seems, judging from compari-
son of the duplicates for the sever
years, from 1914 to 1921 inclusive,
that the duty of the assessor in the
city of South Amboy, is to sit down
and copy the duplicate of the pre-
vious year, into the duplicate of the
present year. 1t was found that
people were assessed twice for the
same property people who have sold
their property are still assessed for
it, and persons for many years dead
are being assessed poll tax.
very little interest is charged on
delinquent taxes, and it seemed to
us in investigating this item, that
ar inequality exists as to whom and
to whom not to charge interest on
delQuencies.
I'VE consider 1t the duty of the
collector to charge each delinquent
taxpayer with interest for the time
his taxes are overdue, and to COL
iStt SNSiy penny " utC ilC
city. making no exceptions or ac-
commodations as between taxpayers.
The books of the collectors depart
ment are not systematic, untidy, and
entirely unfit to be a part of the fl
nancial records of a municipality,
wishing to operate the peoples af-
fairs in a businesslike manner, and
We suggest a change in the account
ing records and methods in this de-
partment.
THE water department accounts
were examined, and actual listing Of
names of delinquent water users,
disclosed the fact that there is due
the city for water consumed, the
sun of $9,842.57. The expense to
operate the water plant during the
year 1920 was ~$45,674.61 and the
receipts during the year, for water
consumed was only $~24,906.76. In
the water department the only book
record that was official was the
water ledger. The rest of the system
Is merely a memoranda, containing
very little information. 1t would
be an improvement if a regular wat
er plant accounting system was in
stalled.
eve made an endeavor to check
the receipts of the miscellaneous
Ai'hNo ~ ihtNiiotop NhitH Oiulildllly
come through the police department,
but no blotter or record was kept
during the past year, therefore, we
were obliged to accept the collec-
tors figures for this revenue, as cor
rect. We suggest proper accounting
records for the police department.
THE receipts and disbursements
from the street department were
verified. and was found that the
street commissioner regularly and
accurately presents a semi-monthly
report of his expenditures to the
governing body.
1T should be noted that the plan
of municipal financing according to
the New Jersey state law, is that all
revenues from whatever source re-
ceived, must be deposited in a gem
eral treasury of the city, and dis
bursements for all departments and
boards of the city be made through
TINS treasury. This is not the case in
your city, as the Board of Health
and the Public Library Board are
given their appropriation in a total
sum-, and operate entirely separate
from the city.
The careful checking of the cash
received, and disbursed through the
t~reasurer's department was made,
and W. wish to say that we were
unable to prove the bank balance
there being a difference between the
cash book balance, and the banE
statement as at December 81, 1921
amounting to $46O.3O. We are in
clined to believe that this is an er-
ror that existed before our perio,
OF audit, and does not represent a
actual embezzlement by the treae
urer.
The former treasurer, in the frs
place, should never have been give
the office; he is entirely incompeten
to keep even the set n