Montgomery County sentinel., 1954-07-01

Continued from Page u

to approve the use of enough of
the $650,000 for current obliga-
tions to bring the tax rate in.
crease down to 6 cents per hun
dred or to its next years level
of $1.93 per hundred.
Hammond's resolution was car
ried by a 4-3 vote: Gravelle,
Monarch and Walker joining in
support of his move.
Spokesman for the dissenting
factor said later that the move
might be politically expedient in
an election year, although it
might well cost the county
thousands of dollars" in interest
because of an unimproved credit
position.
An increase in the tax rate -
earlier estimated at from 7 to
cents per hundred = became OBJ
vious when the Council tore the
budget of former acting County
Manager Jeptha Carrell to shreds
in voting pretty much just what
the various departments of the
County Government had re-
quested.
According to observers, most of
the budget increases were sup
ported by public opinion which, in
many cases, had been informed
and modified by THE MONT
GOMERY COUNTY SENTINEL.
An example is the budget for
county civil defense which now
stands at a total of $61, ,920 COM
pared to the $3.50 recommended
by Mr.. Carroll.
The funds will provide for a
six-man staff, installation of an
attack warning system, and funds
for auxiliary police and fire
wardens.
Councilman George F. Nesbitt
said in connection with the pass
age of the civil defense funds:
"There is not a government
unit n the country including
the Federal - that has plan
for defense in case of atomic or
hydrogen bomb attack. We get
the idea that people aren't sup
posed to think what would hap
pen in the event of such an at
tack. Actually, there is grave
doubt that the nation would
survive. Perhaps, with these
funds, Montgomery County can
lead the nation in developing a
civil defense program"
THE MONTGOMERY COUN.
TY SENTINEL has led the cam
paign for an adequate county
civil defense set-up.
1t was in the field of the county
school capital budget (funds for
the construction of new schools)
that the Council made tn e
biggest dent in Mr.. Carrell's
ceiling, however.
Carrells budget took an ak to
the Board of Education's request
and allowed a mere 81, ,937 ,455 for
new schools. The Council rallied
to the support of the School
Board by passing a $8,282, ,599
school building budget.
This, as President Hammond
said, represented a SO percent
victory for the educators and the
County PTAs. In view of this
fact, Hammond termed ironical a
comment by County PTA Presi-
dent Myron S. Isaacs of Silver
Spring who thanked the Council
but termed its decision "a COM
promise between school needs
and pressures to hold down the
tax rate"
Presumably as a spokesman
for the "pressures to hold down
the tax rate" Morris Allen of the
Montgomery Taxpayers, Inc, con-
ceded defeat for the efforts of
that organization to hold down
school expenses and made a plea
that the school board respect its
pledge not to request more than
$32 million for school buildings
next year.
The Council also increased the
School Boards operating ex-
penses for salaries BY $108, ,433 to
bring the total for this item to
$8,360,255. The increase will en-
able the School Board to hire the
215 new teachers it has sought at
a starting salary of $500 each
and make an average increase of
1925 per year to teachers now in
the system.
Policemen also will fare well
under the new budget. Funds
were included to permit the hir-
ing of eight new officers at an
annual starting salary of $1,000
each, and $61, 900 was provided
for salary adjustments" (raises)
once the County Personnel Board
has definitely established grade
levels and compensation. Funds
were also allocated for eight new
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