PLAINS COUNTY COUNCIL

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXIX, Issue 5263, 16 April 1928, Page 3

PLAINS COUNTY COUNCIL

FINANCIAL POSITION.

TREASURER’S ANNUAL REPORT

The following rqport by the treasurer to the Hauraki Plains County Council, Mr E. A. Mahoney, was received at Thursday's meeting and adopted:—

“ Herewith I beg to submit a completed statement of Accounts (subject to audit) for the year ended 31st March, 1928. The position, genially will be seen to be. more satisfactory than at the close of last year. “ General Rates : Penalty thereon and subsidy exceed last year’s collections by £126. The total of all rates collected was over £23,000, and exceeded last year’s collections by £BOO. Owing to the date for the imposing of the ten per cent, penalty being past the end of the financial year, there has been, a depre.ase in the collection of current rates (1927-28), but this has been more than compensated for by a clearing up of arrears outstanding from previous years. “ Miscellaneous receipts were much in excess of last year’s despite a. big decrease of revenue from hire of plant, due to the absence of extensive loan works. Miscellaneous expejidiutre was considerably less than last year, maintenance! of plant and bridges and administrative charges Showing a substantial saving. The nett result has been that the charge against ridings for general expenditure has been greatly reduced. Last year itqms of extraordinary expenditure. —pipiroa ferry Construction, Wharepoa ferry purchase, transfer to Machinery Loan No. .1 caused a heavy drain on the general account. No tsuch charges have been incurred this year, and thip. fact, together with a refund from the Machinery loan and a subsidy approaching £3OO on tne Ngatea bridge, has contributed principally to the better showing in, the .riding .accounts. In addition to these facts, the care exercised by the council’s Finance and Works Committees when considering general and riding expenditure has justified: itself in the result. “It might be in season to quote from the last Official Year Book to hand from the Government Statistician (1927) as regards cost of management. Costs 'of management, othiejrmost every item of revenue expendimost every item of remenue expenditure with the exception of those on public works and payments on account of interest or bank overdraft, some of the principal being: Salaries and allowances, travelling allowances, printing, advertising, -and stationery, office expenses, audit fees, valuation fees, election and poll expenses, all expenses in connection with- the collection of licenses and fees, and a host of smaller charges. The aver age percentage on expenditure throughout all counties in New Zealand was 7 per cent. The percejntage of the total expenditure of this county for the same period was 5.49 per cent. ,

“Licenses and Fees. —These show an increase of £3lB over the previous year, the collections being neaifly £BOO. Careful supervision by a wihole-timq inspector should, I am of opinion, considerably enhance this amount in the future, unless there is a substantial decrease in the allocation from the heavy traffic pool. ■ FERRIES. “Komata North Ferry.—ln vie.w of the chairman’s tentative arrangement with the Ohinemuri County Council for. Ohes taking over of this ferry afterwards, confirmed by the council —I have kept very careful supervision over the account of the ferry. The step taken by the council has been more than justified by the result of the first year’s working. Exclusive of capital expenditure! of. £230 4s 2d (removal and reconstruction of Wharepoa ferry house), the ferry shows a profit of £llB 8s 7d, the chairman’s offer having been made, on an estimate of a nett revenue of £lOO per annum. “Pipiroa Ferry.—Excluding capital expenditure of £B.l 13s 3d, the Pipiroa ferry shows a nett profit of £lOO 'ss 2d. Renewals and repairs on this ferry have been, considerable, while the servicej has been unavoidably suspended on several occasions. .RIDING ACCOUNTS'. . The position of • the. ridings oil March 31, 1928, in pounds, was as follows, with the balance on April L 1927, in parentheses “Turua, £221 credit (£409 debit) ; Kopuarahi, £46 credit (£258 debit) ; Horahi.a, £872 debit (£B6O debit) ; Kerepeehi, £77 debit (£lO2 diebit) ; Netherton, £356 credit (£122. debit) ; Patetonga, £546 debit (£668 debit) ; Ngatea, £649 debit (£4OB debit) ; Pipiroa,. £3l credit (£72 credit) ; Waitakaruru, £4OO debit (£BO3 debit). “A little explanation of details: not revealed by the bajlance-sheet is necessary in the case of some of the ridings.

“Horahia has had heavy expend! ture ’ without a great deal of assist' ance by way of Main Highways' sub sidy.

“Ngatea has ihad a lean year also as regards subsidy, and in addition has had extraordinary charges to meet in the shape of Puhanga Canal Road £ll3, Kaiihere-Torehape grant share of expenditue £79, and KaihereOhinewai grant share of expenditure extending over several years £473.

“Pipiroa has again, emerged with a credit balance after expending £338 a;s its share! of the construction and metallling of Moehau Road. The position of this riding is due to a great extent to the collection of ‘old arrears of rates.

“Waitakaruru has decreased, its debit of last year after meeting nett expenditure on Mangataimta bridges £347, and Coxhead’s filling £52. This riding also owes its improved position to the collection of old arrears.

“Before concluding w’ith'i the general and riding accounts I beg to point out that two items of £925 and, £292 received from the machinery loan and Main Highways Board on account of the Ngatea bridge! and included in the. general account receipts have been responsible for reducing the general expenditure charged to Tidings this year by over £l2OO. Tlie(se can loiily bq regarded' as extraordinary, neceapts,

and tire comparatively small amount charged to ridings in the general account must not be taken as a basis for future estimates of these charge®SEPARATE ACCOUNTS.

“The; Hospital Account shows a. deficit from last year. This is accounted for by an increased payment to the Thames Hospital! Board, while the rate struck to meet this increased levy is still for the greater part outstanding.

“Heavy Traffic Fees.—The Audit' Department requires that heavy traffic fees be shown in the first place as a separate account, each year's collections being held in suspense from the general account pending pooling and redistribution. The balance is, of course, transferred to the general account after redistribution, from the pool. ’

“Thirds account is in credit £245 14s 7d.

“Main Highways subsidy .received, £630'3 18s 7d.

“Government Grants.—The following grants have been, received : — “Mangatarata bridges, £2’so (free),; Ngararahi stop-bank £2OO, Coxhead s filling £650, Kaiheye-Ohinewai £lOO, Kaihere-Torehape loan £438, KaihereTor chape, Road £7B 15s, Moehau Road £320 19s 9d, NethertonrA'waiti £2450

(automatic allocations) ; Water Supply, £4704 5s lid. “An additional £looo' .Was. received on account of the Netherton-Awaiti roads too late for inclusion in this year’s accounts.

“Interest Accounts. —Adil, the oldef interest accounts are in a fairly good position, but the more recent accounts still show debit balances.

“Ferrymen’s Wages.—Lt has been brought to my notice that the ferrymen have worked continuously at

their jobs seiven days a week, including ajll holiday# statutory or otherwise. As both have proved' to be exceptionally good servants to the coii.nlcil I would recommend for the council’s favourable consideration that nsome allowance be made them in the shape of extra pay for work during holiday time,. “Rating for 1928-29. —1 would reispectfully .recommend that the estimates for 1928-29 be considered by the council at the earliest possible date, and the rates be demanidted not later than August 1, sooner if The penalty will then, accrue well before the end of the milking season, the bulk of the rates be paid by that time and included in this year’s adcounts.”

In moving the adoption of the report the chairman commended 1 the clerk on the thoroughness and completeness of the statement. The council affairs were shown to be in a very satisfactory state. Cr. Parfitt seconded a motion of appreciation of Mr Mahoney’s work/ and Crs. Mayn and Miller spoke in support and 1 the motion was carried. Relative to the recommendation conceirhing the ferrymen’s wages, the matter wa|s referred to the "Works Committee for a report. Cr. Harris urged that the time was approaching when the ferries should be made free. They were part of the highway system, and the council should not be making a profit out of the undertaking. The neighbouring local bodies should be approached. Cr. Mayn pointed out that the Pipi"

roa ferry would have to show a profit for many years to come to .return the general account the money it had invested ih the plant.