INCREASE IN CITY RATES

New Zealand Times, Volume XLVI, Issue 10613, 11 June 1920, Page 5

INCREASE IN CITY RATES

MUNICIPAL FINANCES REASON FOR INCREASE COUNCIL'S BUDGET NEARLY QUARTER OF MILLION. INTERESTING DETAILS. At last night’s meeting of the City Council, the Mavor (Air J. P. Luke, M.P.I , moved tho adoption of the recommendation of the finance committeo that the following rates bo struck for the ensuing year;— ON UNIMPROVED VALUE. Producing. £ General 1 3d 146,807 City Improvements Loan 15-2003 2920 Sanitation Loan, No. 1 49-20Od 0705 Sanitation Loan, No. 27-200 d 1386 Consolidation Loan 20-200 d 3940 Library 17-2003 4150 Melrcse Improvements Loan 63-200 d ISS3 Outlying Districts Drainage 160-200 d 6040 ON ANNUAL VALUE. Per cent. Water Rate 2Jd 29,300 Hospital and Charitable Aid 6jd 35,513 Total £241,644 ONSLOW SPECIAL RATES. Produc- ■ ing. £ Works Loan 43-200 d 443 Catchmanti Area No. 1 51-200 d 228 Catchment Area. No. 2 ......'. 21-300 d 93 Public HalljJvbnndallab 4S-200d 9o Kaiwarra Drainage 66-200 d 47 Total £905 KAROIII SPECIAL RATES. Produc- ' ing. £ Tunnel and Road Improvements .. 16-200 d 163 Tunnel & Road Improvements, No. •2 8-2C03 81 Tunnel & Road Improvements No. 3 E 9-200 d 91 Road Widening & Purchase of Recreation Ground 132-200 d 1348 Completion of Road Widening 33-200 d 38/ Recreation Reserve Improvements .. 21-2003 12 1 Total £MO7 MAYOR ON CITY FINANCES. The net increase on the amount of tho general rate over last year, at 3d, instead of 2)d in -the £l, would he, said the Mayor, £24,400. The reason for this was mainly the increases in wages and salaries and in the cost of materials. If the rate was increased by one-tenth of a penny, it would mean an additional revenue of £4893; and if it was increased by- three-tenths of a penny, there would bo an increased revenue of £14,679. But he thought they should increase it by }d. It was, he urged, necessary to get tho rate struck and given effect to without delay, so that the rate notices could t>c sent out at once. Tho hospital and charitable aid rate was to be increaced from sjd to Old on the annual value, and was estimated to produce in round figures £35,000 this year,, as against £28,000 last year, or an increase of £7OOO. It might be said that councillors were desirous of going into the general estimates; but the city engineer and his stiff and the finance committee had Icen quite unable to do more than they had done during the past few weeks in dealing with and adjusting tho ncreased wages and salaries of the council employees and other matters affecting their conditions of labour, and so forth. It had been quite impotfible for them to prepare any detaied estimates. He, therefore, aekec the council to accept the actual expenditure of last year as the estimate for th© current year, or as a gule to the expenditure this year. Xh» council, he pointed out, would hire an opportunity of recasting the e.-penditure, as the various works ■wre brought up by the city engineer, ad that was why he bad given the lad that he . had'done. He contendd that by accepting that lead they rould'not embarrass either the coun- • il or tho finance committee in regard to tho coming year’s finances. If ;hey came to a settlement how much they would increase tho rates by, tho city treasurer could get his staff to work getting out the notices, and the rates would bo forthcoming at practically the same period as last year. Ho maintained that this? estimates were before them "sufficiently to enable them to come to a decision as to tho rates The position was that they knew perfectly well the amount of money spent on the various services this year as not likely to be less than that spent last year, as there had been increased cost all round. They would necessarily need finance equal to last year, and possibly more. Whether tho council was prepared to deal with the question of rates then, or in committee later in tho evening, was for councillors to determine. He moved the resolution. GROWTH OF CITY SERVICES.

Owing to the growth of the city and of tho city tier vices, added it li c Mayor, tho amount of work to he done by tho chief executive officers of the city had increased so greatly that they had littio or no recreation. The question was getting intolerable, and so long as the council was carrying on services that were not strictly tho services of the council, such as tramways and electric lighting, tho work must necessarily bo enormous, and the council, he held, should give' its officers every support and assistance in their work. Considering the great amount of work theso officers did and the great number of committee meetings they had to attend, he, for one, would not ho too critical as to the estimates not being ready right up to time. If the ran: notices were not K°t out promptly, the second demand note would tome right on top of the first, and the people

would at ouco begin to find the burden of the rales. Councillor liuckio seconded the motion, but pointed out that what the Mayor had read out was not a statement of this year's estimates, but a Statement of last year’s expenditure. Tho Mayor said that was so, hut the estimates were based on the expenditure of last year. Councillor Luckio asked what would be tho position if any further work was to be done, bringing the expenditure above the amount of revenue budgeted for.

Tho Mayor said that in that case a loan would have to bo raised. They would not he able to do the- work out of revenue.

COUNCILLOR FORSYTH PROTESTS

Councillor Forsyth protested that the procedure suggested was quite unbusinesslike. The members of the finance committee might understand the positron. bur he did not. The council, he contended, should be provided with a schedule of the estimates. The Mayor: Tho expenditure for last year is the schedule of the estimates. Councillor Forsyth sUiid that it was far too serious a matter for tho council to) take on at thatl time, and, without a proper schedule of the estimates. It was all very well for the members of tin! finance committee but he was not a member. The same excuse, that they could vary the estimates later, had been made for the adoption of the same unbusinesslike procedure last year. Ho would vote against the motion. The delay' of a, foturight would not greatly matter. There must bo many thousands of pounds.' for works on tho estimates of last year which hatf not been spent. Tho Mayor: There is every year. Councillor Forsyth said that a sum had been on tho estimates for years for the improvement qf Dixon street, and tho work had not) been done yet. It was no wonder that the milk committee complained about tho dust in. the street, which, to his mind, explained the dust they got in the milk, Nd one outside the finance committee knew what the. £SO,(XX) for street w-orka was for. It was very unbusinesslike. THE MAYOR’S APPEAL. The Mayor appealed to the council to pass the motion, saying that it had been absolutely impossible, uudor the conditions he bad referred to, to got the estimates done in tho way that they would like. Mr Alortoa and tho finance committee had been for weeks engaged on the different phases of the conditions of work, wages, and salaries of tho the council. If they accepted the estimates on the basis ’of last year, they could adjust them later. What they wanted to do that night was to pass the vote. Councillor Forsyth: Tho finance committee must have had a schedule of works in its hands. Councillor Frost: No, we had not. Councillor Forsyth contended that it was not right to strike a rate until they knew what it was to be spent on. The Mayor said that he had given an estimate of the increase already. They wero budgeting for an increased revenue of -£24,000 to meet it. Councillor Forsyth objected that no details had been given. When it was proposed to increase tho rate by £24,000 the ratepayers ought itf know something more about it. It was becoming a habit to pass the estimates and adjust th© schedules afterwards. Parish street would bo a disgrace to any backblocks town, and Victoria street and Wakefield street were in a very bad condition, forcing the traffic to go through tho main streets of the city. “A CAPTIOUS CRITIC.”

Tbo Mayor said that he was 'surprised at Councillor Forsyth's captious criticism. ,Tho only thing the councillor could cavil at was the question of street works. If the council would pass the motion, so that they could get out the rate notices, councillors could deal with th« works as Mr Morton had brought them dowii. They could cut them out or adjust matters, so long os they did not increase the amount, voted. They had spent £50,000 last year on street works, and, they knew that £50,000 would not carry out the work this year, because wages, salaries, and the cost of materials had gone up so much. It would savo the council’s money to got tho rates struck, so that they could get the notices put, and not call upon tho people to pay tbo whole of the rates in one payment. Councillor Forsyth protested that they should not vote on things they were entirely in the dark about. Councillor Glover said l that the statement of the Mayor that £50,000 would not cover the cost of street works this year was a reason why they should not pass the motion. The Mayor said that £IO,OOO 'increase bad been allowed for on street works—£6o,ooo instead of £50,000. Councillors Wright and Frost supported tho resolution. EXPENDITURE ON CITY SERVICES. Councillor McKenzie gave the following figures, as showing the growth of expenditure on tho services of the city, taking tho years ended March 31st, 1914 and 1920. (Ting figures for 1914 are given in parenthesis): —Street works (£33,035), £50,992; scavenging and street-watering (£8808), £16,619; collection and destruction of refuse £663"), £15,239; drainage (£6868), £10,316; fire brigades (£6747), £lO,258; waterworks (working), (£16,664), £23,642; salaries (general), (£7135), £11,400; reserves (£7304), £12,665; hospital and charitable aid (£13,623), £28,242. Nearly two-thirds of the amount spent on streets went in wages, other accounts were not so much, hut the reserves account showed the greater part is for wages. The increase in upkeep between the years 1914 and 1920 is accounted for by—(a) increases in wages; (b) increase in cost of materials (varying up to 100 per cent); and (c) tho area enlarged by the amalgamation of Onslow. The general rate in 1914 was 2 l-10d, anfi produced _ £88.413; last vear it was 2)d, and, including Onslow, produced £122,342. The district fund overdraft in 1914 was £33,562; in 1920 it was £103,180. This increase was accounted for by capital works being paid for out of the .district fund. East year the council expended tho following:—On housing account, £20,559; dental company’s building, £B2OO. Previous renrs -also teljowod ca/pital expenditure out of tho district fund. As a set-off to tho chore it was interesting to note that our net loan debt was less to-day than in 1914. Here were the figures:—l9l4, gross debt. £2.294.050; less sinking funds, £291,450: net debt. £1.999,6(50. 1920, gross debt £2,365,635; less sinking funds, £'457.427; net debt. £1.908.208. He did not, cavil at the increase in tho rates. Although tho expenditure

hod gone up, they did not. know tho full reason for tho increases. It was not all accountable for by labour. The Mayor: Increased cost of materia,l also. . Councillor Chapman said that material had increased in cost more than labour. Ho protested against the fact that there was no Labour councillor on the finance committee. Councillor McKenzie said that his point was that the city should receive full value for money spent. A more strict investigation of expenditure was necessary. Tho motion was carried, Councillor Forsyth’s being the only dissentient voice.