New-York tribune., 1921-12-23
Officials Face
Jail as Budget
Crisis Grows 5
Appellate Court Orders
Hylan and the Estimate
Board TO Restore Three
Million Cut i'm Pensions
Must Act Before Dec. 70
Comptroller Away Hunting
and Deputy Will Refuse
10 Sign Present Document

Further legal complications in regard
TO the 1922 budget. which threaten to
invalidate the budget as whole in it's
present form and, possibly, put the
Mayor and other members of the
Board of Estimate in Jail for contemnt
of court, arose yesterday.
Under the law the budget must be
signed and approved by the Mayor, the
Comptroller and the City Clerk on or
before December 25 In the absence of
Comptroller Charles L. Craig on a
hunting trip Deputy Comptroller Henrv
Smith will be called upon to sign as
acting Comptroller.
1t was learned, however, that Mr..
Smith did not intend TO sign the
budget in its present form on the
ground that it was an illegai docu-
ment. The difficulty lies in the fact
tnat there is apparently no legitimate
way ID which TO reduce the budget SO
that 1t will come within the 9 per cent
legal tax limit. 1t appears, also, that
the present situation is due in some
measure to the effort of the Mayor and
other members of the finance and
budget committee Of the Board of Esti-
mate to make I'D the budget without
the assistance of Comptroller Craig
ana contrary to his advice. The Comp
troller was not present at the meetings
OF the finance and budget committee
when preliminary approval TO all the
items was given.
Two Days Left for Work
As there are only two more days left
before the budget must be finally
passed, the city officials will have to
WORK last 20 conform to the legal re-
qulrements Officials of the Finance
Department. admitted last night that
the city had never confronted a more
serious financial problem.
The complications began in earnest
yesterday when the Mayor, the Comp
troiler and other members of the Board
of Estimate were served with comics of
the recent order of the Appellate Diyi-
sion of the Supreme Court directinp
the city officials TO restore to the 1929
BUDGET s"n'e So 600 0Oo os citv aenart-
ment pension funds which, it wag al
legged, were illegally deducted in order
to bring the budget within the cousti
tutlonai tax limit A similar order was
obtained originally from Justice Mul
ian in the Supreme Court. by Bernard
$. Deutsch, counsel for the United
Real Estate Owners Association. An
appeal from this order was taken by
the city to- the Appellate Division.
which recently affirmed the order of
the lower court.
George P. Nicholson, Assistant Cor
pcration Counsel, who represented the
Board of Estimate in the court pro-
ceedlngs, gave notice yesterday of the
city's intention To appeal to the Court
of Appeals. Mr.. Nicholson contended
that this notice would act automatical-
~ as q stay TO the order of the Appel
late Division and permit the budget to
be signed on time. II is understood,
however, that the ruling of the Ap-
pellate Division was unanimous, and If
30, no appeal can be taken with out the
consent of that court or 4 judge of
the Court of Appeals. Whether such
permission will be granted is ques-
tion, in view of the fact that the Mayor
has to act on the budget, approving or
rejecting it, on or before next Monday,
as the 25th is both holiday and falls
on Sunday.
While the city authorities arc in q
quandary as to how to provide for the
S., 900 900 pension funds, this situation
is further complicated by the dis
covery by the Comptroler's Office that
z recent decis' on Of The United States
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