The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1922-03-01
TOTALTAX RATE
 TO BE 3O.S MILLS


 (Continued From Page One.) district, s2,622, ,S43.69; total, $6,O03,-
 Surplus: First district, s2,114s5; Second district, s1,341.O6.
 Unemployment tax, S.5 mills. total tax sos mills
 Many Cuts Made.
 Tn order to reduce expenses as much as possible, cuts were made in departmental budgets all along the suffering the largest loss of s163,-- t136.20. A considerable portion of this sum will be returned through the ! contingent fund, however, and an ap- preparation of $2,000 was granted yeS- terl afternoon to take care of the present unemployment emergency. The contingent fund total will amount to Sl19,OOO, and will take care of all ipaving appropriations which were ! stricken out.
 The Fire department budget, which was the main topic of discussion at an executive session of the Board of Ap- reduced from s655, ,256.06 to $644,- 646.06, a cut of S1O,610. Salaries were only sighted affected, but the Fire department was the storm center yes- terday afternoon.
 After the budget had been finally approved Joseph w. Northrup, who was occupying a seat on the specta- tors benches, made a vigorous protest against the tax which appeared evil dent, and asserted that all salaries from the mayor down should be re- duced 20 per cent. MT. Northrup was advised to take his complaint before the Board of Aldermen.
 B. I. Ashmun moved that s43,000 be stricken from the regular salary list and placed in a special salary contingent fund.- This motion was sec onded by George B. Clark, but J. A. Leverty protested on the grounds that the Common Council should take up the matter and settle it by ordinance. MT. Clark was of the opinion that the | Board would exceed its auth ority by recommending such an action to the Council. and the motion was finally lost on a vote.
 Fire Dept. Reduction. 1 few minutes before the adjourn ment of the meeting, the proposed re- organization of the Fire department, which includes the dropping of the last six men appointed, was outlined presented by B. I. Ashmun, a mem Der of the sub1-committee on the Fire 1 department, with the motion that it be unanimously adopted:
 1 -~ We recommend the dropping of the last six men appointed to the department as the depart 1 ment was sufficiently manned and their appointment was un- 1 necessary and an added expense
 to the city. This will save ap-
 proximate1y s12.OOO. | We recommend that the Fire l Prevention Bureau be abolished l This could be accomplished l without removing any of the safe l guards or increasing the fire hazards in any way. In place of 1 the present bureau there should
 be established a district inspec- | tion controlled from each fire house through the commanding l officer, who should detail one or more men each month to this 1 in addition to giving better pro | lection, would also familiarize 1 the men with the buildings in their district and enable them to perform more efficiently in case of fire. It would save the city approximately S18,40G. Three of the six men detailed | to switchboard work at head l quarters should be released for service as hosemen, adding three men to the active fire ! force.
 The repair department is ex- l pensive far beyond it's efficiency and should be reorganized to tighten the burden of the tax payers. We recommend that the office of assistant superintend- ent of machinery be abolished, being unnecessary and can be dispensed with without impairing the efficiency of the department. Three of the machinists should be reduced to hosemen. One machinist should be dropped, reducing the department to one as machinists. This will save the city approximately s7,5OO. It Is not necessary, nor Is it
 economical for the department
 to have a clerk rating as an as-
 sistant chief. We recommend
 that the clerk be reduced to hose
 man, saving the city approN-
 mately s1.0OO.
 of
 mason and painter should be
 abolished and we recommend
 that this work be done by men
 with hosemen's rating. The ap-
 proNfmate savings to the city
 would be $2,1OO.
 All the officers acting as chaf-
 feurs should be reduced to hose
 men grade. It is not necessary
 for a lieutenant to act as an assistant chiefs driver. This will
 save approximately $1.50O.
 From the foreegoing. you will
 red9ced 0e eda 4as aanaE s45ooe s4a
 without in any way lessening the A efficiency of the department,
 making it still more efficient
 through the reorganization which
 becomes necessary.
 The above recommendations
 have the approval of Mayor
 Fred Atwater, and the admins
 tration will ask the Common
 Council to have resolutions and
 ordinances necessary to make ef-
 fective the saving and reorgani-
 zation above outlined.
 George B. Clark, who with Edward Spargo and MT. Ashmun constituted 1 the subcommittee, stated that he be- lieved the suggestions contained in the resolution should come from the Fire Commissioners and Mayor Atwater but was in favor of economy.
 MT. Ashmun declared that the Board of Apportionment would not be ex-1 ceeding its powers in recommending and claimed that some jobs in the fire department call for much higher ratings than they are rightfully en- titled. He asserted that the board would not be attempting to run the Fire department, but would be point ing out abuses which now exist there |
 Motion Is Lost.
 Discussion on the resolution occu- pied considerable time, but Ashmun's