The Sidney herald., 1957-12-26

VAC SNdlc IOr detailed
information.
1t might be said that involved
IN the whole process was a sort
OF psychological cycle, not exact
~ Of distrust but at least the
+, cling that the submitted budget
was superficial rather than thor
ough and chiefly a guide for the
lawmakers. Thus neither the bud
get board o the appropriations
and finance committees of the
assembly lacked faith in the bud
get recommendations. The con-
troller law was supposed to rem
edy this situation, but as yet there
is little to indicate that the legis-
lature is less inclined than in the
past to deal roughly with the
budget recommendations passed
up TO it.
Control of state general fund
expenditures is a constitutional
function of the board of exami-
ners and cannot be taken from
the board except through a con-
stitutional amendment-certainly
not through statutory enactment.
So this authority still is in the
board of examiners and in that
respect the controller is no con-
troller at all.
There may lever be abuse of
it, but l think it is basically poor
public policy to vest in the same
official the purchase of goods
and supplies and the auditing of
claims. Under the controller act
the purchasing department and
the state accountant were drawn
under the same roof as respon-
sibilities of the controller.
We were told that this CONSOLE
would be an economy.
Figures that l have recently seen
Indicate that the contrary is true.
installation of mechanical ac-
counting equipment has undoubt-
sdly increased costs but l ques-
ion whether there has been a
corresponding increase in book
,eeping efficiency.
1t is not the fault of the con-
roller if our state budget is
any more realistic than it
vas before we had this official.
Unless the legislature, which it
5 unlikely to do, gives him a
taft sufficiently large and COM
'etent to dig conclusively to the
financial roots of the manifold
ctlvities of the state government,
ne controller is confronted with
hopeless task.
In line with the procedure in
ongress, there has long been
eed for the Montana legislature
!, have its own means, apart
'om the executive branch, to de-
elop its own budgetary data and
this process to formulate more
iequate policies of fiscal admin
tration. Implementing this need
one of the features Of the leg
lative council law, perhaps the
ost important one
Regarding the machinery the
'uncil is setting up to deal with
is phase, the chairman, Sen. :
avid F. James of Liberty coun-
+, said:
"We feel this subcommittee
uld make recommendations,
nich, if enacted by the legisla-
re, could effect great savings
the state"
Senator James assertion, tho
Their a generalization, is indeed
lid. I think that if he were to
more specific he would say
at to achieve this result it will
necessary to dig more deeply
d completely than has ever
en- done before to the bedrock
which the state governments
ole fiscal structure stands.
rhe legislative council is head
in the right direction, but the
ID ahead is steep, rough and
G. Perhaps the remark that
me was not built in a day is
olicable here. The goal, nor
thing approximating it, will
be reached next year-prob-
y not for a decade or more.
the journey is in the right
ection. and that is encouraging.