Milford chronicle., 1954-12-10
State Finance System
Scored Bg Experts
leontInued irom flrst 80

tcontinued from first pagel
such as a comprehensive lob classi-
ication and salary plan it IS diff
cult for the state to manage its
personnel dob holders, that isl
economically.
fc) Development and use Of per-
formance standards - The state
should begin in the near future to
develop work performance stand
ards for each major function and
activity. These standards should be
IN terms Of work units and hours
expended and cost per work unit.
Many Of the things the state does,
such as the processing Of meteor
vehicle registrations and assess
nent Of franchise taxes, are meas
urable types Of work for which
performance standards can and
should be developed.
I'D Improved operating reports
AT present the Governor, the
Legislature and the public (the
taxpayers) have little way cf know
ing how we'll the various state pro-
grams and functions are being per-
formed and at what cost. Not less
than once a month. the Governor
should have available a summary
Of the states financial affairs. This
report should contain a forecast Of
future expenditures by major pro-
grams for the remainder Of the fis-
cal year. It should also point up
possible future fiscal problems and
alternative solutions. Without such
information the Governor is seri-
ously handicapped in his lob Of
providing leadership and direction
to the executive departments and
agencies. Brief, clear financial re-
ports to the Legislature and the
people can and should be prepared.
The reports to the Governor will
provide a basis for such reports.
Other observations;
At the present time, the Gov
ernOr Of Delaware and his fiscal ad-
visOrs lack adequate data on which
to estimate future revenues. This
is particularly true for the personal
income tax and the corporate franz
chise tax.
sDelaWare's revenue structure
did not keep pace with the need for
increased services and capital con
struction from 1947 to present. This
IS the period during which bonded
debt increased 21 times.
Debt Increase Cited
"Since 1947 Delaware has fol-
lowed a policy Of almost complete
~ financing capital expenditures
from debt. AS a result debt has in
creased from s4,000,000 to S84 4,0OO,-
600. Debt service now consumes IL
per cent of general fund revenues.
The cost of the projects finan-
ced from debt has been higher than
if IL had been financed from cur
rent revenues.
''The state debt has increased 21.
times since 1947 This has occurred
during period Of prosperity in a
state that has the highest per capi-
"a income of any state and the low
est per capita state-lOcal tax bur
den. A golden opportunity to keep
the state on pay-as-yOu-g 90 finan-
eial basis has been lost.
The state has placed itself in
a vulnerable financial position in
the event Of q major economic re-
cession. a recession would bring
lower General Fund revenues &c
time when the cost of services
would be on the increase. During
such a period debt service would
consume a much higher percentage
Ct current revenue than the present
ll per cent. The state would be
caught on the horns Of a tough
dilemma-revenues coming down,
expenditures going up, and debt
service requiring a greater per-
centage Of current revenue.
There is clear evidence that the