TOWN BOARD FINANCES.

Kaipara and Waitemata Echo, 6 April 1916, Page 2

TOWN BOARD FINANCES.

TO THE EDITOR

SIR,—I read Mr Jas. McLeod's letter in your last issue dealing with my statement of the Town District's finances. Mr McLeod in the endeavour —to him unaccustomed—to be brief, has certainly become obscure. But he appears first of all to admit the utter absurdity of a local body with a general revenue of £460 per annum incurring liabilities of £1000, outside of its loans. He then says it is not worth his while to reply Quite right, the man who is responsible for a state of affairs which he admits is absurd, cannot improve matters by replying to a statement showing the absurdity. But when he goes on to dispute the illegality of such expenditure, I really do feel called upon to "enlighten" him. The Act of Parliament dealing with such matters provides that it shalll not be lawful for the local body to enter into any engagements or contracts whereby the total liabilities shall at the end of the month of March in each year exceed the amount of the income of the body for that year. The present Board entered into no fresh engagements prior to the month of March following their election, yet the engagements of the old Bo ard placed the present Board in the position of owing much more than one year's revenue. Moreover, the old Board on March 31st., 1914, was in a similar position. As to Mr McLeod's challenge to me to prosecute him ; as a man with public bodies experience, he ought to know that that is for the auditor to take in hand—not Mr McLeod's successor. Mr McLeod then states that I do not understand what I am talking about, and that he will not enlighten me. Mr McLeod is wrong. I fully understand what lam talking about. I quite recognise the fact that the whole business of raising the £3000 loan was performed in •uch a slipshod manner that it was very difficult to trace what was done. Mr M cLeod apparently did a great part of the work himself, and then went to the Board to have his actions confirmed. There is no record that I can find in the Boards minute book to show what was the exact proposal submitted to the ratepayers. Apparently no rate of interest was fixed, no term nor method of repayment. At least, there is no record of any such. I defy any one to judge from the minute book just what proposal was carried. So Mr McLeod had some grounds for supposing he was the only one who knew all about the loan, and for hoping that I could not find out without him." enlightening " me. However, I know that the proposal put before the ratepayers' meeting was for a loan of 20 years' currency, but he later executed debentures illegally, extending the term to 21 years, The preliminary steps leading up to the poll of ratepayers were rather badly bungled, the Board having to pay for three advertisements instead of one, and the meeting of ratepayers being held on the 15th of August, 1913, whereas it was required by law to be after, not before, the notices of the poll published from September 3rd to September 24th. However, on October 2nd, Helensville, by 50 votes to 2, decided to borrow £3000, and to repay it in 20 years time. Now Helensville is only a small place, and in 1933 is not likely to be so large that it will easily find a sum of £3300 all in one year. particularly while it is still paying for its £10,000 loan and probably other loans. Surely then, it was the clear duty of the Town Board, if its leader was gifted with any business sense at all, to make provision for the payment of the debt when it falls due. A sinking fund should have been established, say 1 per cent for the first five years, \\i for the next five, 2 for the next five, and sufficient during the next five to pay off the balances due. In not establishing this sinking fund the late Board showed that its then head, instead of providing for the future, was prepared to let things drift, hoping, Micawber-like, that something would turn up to save the district from bankruptcy.—l am, etc., E. Thurlow Field, Chairman Helensville Town Board. Helensville, April 3rd., 1916,