Iron County record. [volume] (Cedar City, Utah) 1893-1982, 1922-03-17
PEOPLE ARE STOCKHOLDERS
IN BUSINESS OF GOVERNMENT
So Says Gov. Mabey in Communication
To County Commissioners.

the work undertaken and of the ex-
/ penditures entailed. We now have
four divisions of government which
are empowered ~ levy taxes ans
undertake improvements, each in
dependent of the others. They are:
cities and towns, school districts,
counties and the state. Inasmuch
as each can, and usually does,act in
dependently, the taxpayer unless he
be closer student of government
than the average person, loses sight
of the aggregate of the expenses,
his proportion Of which he ultimately
will be called upon to bear.
In view of such a situation it is
not surprising that most of US are
shocked to learn that the aggregate
public debt of the various taxing
units of the state is in excess of
SAL, 100000. OF this amount about
S3,500,000 represents Temporary loans
carrying interest charges ranging
from 6 to 10 per cent and probably
will be paid after taxes are collected
this winter. The remainder of the
public debt is in the nature of bonds,
practically all of 20 years maturity,
with occasionally an optional 10-year
redemption. =.
Assuming the population of Utah
to be 100000, the per capata public
debt is approximately s93. or $465
for the average family. Figuring
the average interest rate as 52 per
cent and allowing per cent a year
for sinking funds, then 101s per cent
of the total debt or in excess of
$4,300,000 must be provided annual
ly by the people to meet standing
obligations. If this charge were dis.
tributed equally it would mean that
each man, woman and child in the
state would pay approximately $3.50
and the average family about $4S
year on the public debt.
Put in reality the situation is
worse. The temporary loans, for the
most part. should be retired about
the. end of the year and that will
mean the setting aside from taxes
chiefly of about $3,500,000; then
there will be the interest charges
which, including the short-time paper,
will amount to about S2,000,000, and
the sinking funds which will amount
to about S1,9OO,OOO. The total con-
tribution toward the public debt
this year, therefore will be about
$7,A00,000. or an amount equal to
about 40 per cent of the total taxes
to be collected in the State.
OF course, the interest charges
must be met when due or the credit
of the state or community defaulting
is seriously impaired. 1t is to be
hoped that the temporary loans also
will be cared for when the notes fall
due. But it is of the utmost i'm
poraance that there be no failure to
set aside sinking funds at the pro-
per periods in order that it may not
be necessary to overcome years of
neglect in one year, and that the
bonds will be retired properly at
maturity.
The data compiled on the public
debt show the following distribution:
cities and towns Sl2,7l9,507; schools
ST., 2S0,369; state S10,535, 900; coun-
ties S7,O58,6S0- These figures do not
include about fifteen towns in var
ious parts of the state which have
not yet reported The Indebtedness
of the cities and towns represents
for the most part, electric lights,
water works, public buildings and
paving. The school Indebtedness is
represented almost entirely by build
ing activities. The county bonded
debt is almost entirely due to road
building as is $7.20O,O0O of the state
debt
Now let us review briefly the tax
situation for 1921 from the stand
point of the state as a whole, and
compare it with conditions in 1920:
1921 Difference
6ss,O25.2ss 29,i95, 49S increase