The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1941-01-21
SHOW INCREASE
in OPERATION
OF GOVERNMENT
PER CAPITA COST IN MON
ROE COUNTY WAS S.s3;
FLoRIDA'S AVERAGE WAS
ss.23
,speclaI to The Citizenl

Especial TO The Citizen)
JACKSONVILLE, Jan. 81
County government, not includ-
ing schools and debt service pay
ments, cost the people of Florida
S6.26 for each man, woman, and
child in 1885. In 1889 the cost
had increased to 1928 per per-
SON., according to statement re-
leased here today by the Florida
Tax evision League.
THE per capita cost in 1889
varied from a low of $40 for
Alachua county to a high of
$22.72 for Hendry county. The
per capita cost for Monroe coun-
ty was $7.93 in 1889 compared to
the state average of 1928.
1T has been frequently and ac-
curately said that democracy is
on trial but we should recognize
the fact that the dangers to our
democratic way of life are not
entirely from enemies without.
We face just as serious dangers
from the enemies within and the
most dangerous enemies within
the framework of our democracy
are those federal, state, and local
officials, who as a result of In
competency, political expediency,
political graft, or other reasons
are unnecessarily increasing the
cost of our democratic govern
ment.
1.-THE cost of federal, state, and
local government has increased
enormously in the past 10 years.
The cost has already reached the
point that the tax burden is a
severe strain on the individual
taxpayers, therefore, on our en-
tire economic system. We are now
faced with the necessity of
spending additional billions of
dollars for national defense. To
pay the defense bill without
wrecking our entire economic
structure it is essential that the
cost of ordinary functions of gov
eminent be reduced to the abso-
lutte minimum, otherwise, history
may show that the worse enemies
to democracy were not the ag-
gressor dictators of foreign lands
but those of our own elected Of
ficials who through Incompetent
cy, waste, and extravaganza rem
dered the worlds greatest de-
mocracy incapable to defend it
self.
"Retrenchment in ordinary
government cost is essential for
national defense and the public
official who fails to do his part in
cutting ordinary government ex-
penses to the bone, or hides be-
hind national defense as smoke
screen to increase ordinary gov
eminent cost, is just as much a
traitor as the man who refuses to
face the enemy under fire, or de-
Iberately aids the enemy.
'The drastic increase in Flor
ida's county government cost in
the past five years is indefensi-
bic, One clear indication is
county welfare cost. In 1885 the
counties disbursements for well
fare totaled $l,297, 900. Since
1885 the federal and state social
security program has taken over
old age pension costs entirely
from the counties and spent huge
sums in unemployment insurance,
aid to the blind and dependent
children, and other welfare pur-
poses. but county disbursements
for welfare in 1899 totaled So, 102,-
000--an increase of 62ee.
In this same connection, il
should be borne in mind that the
thing that makes possible a con-
tinuous increase in the cost OF
county government is the fact
that county officials have arbi.
trary, indefinite, and practically
unlimited authority to levy adj va.
loren property taxes, and as these
property tax levies increase tau
inequalities, tax evasion, tax de,
linquency, and the other abuse:
inherent in the ad valorem ta>
system increase in similar ratio"