DETENTION OF LAND REVENUE.

Oamaru Mail, Volume IV, Issue 1241, 9 April 1880, Page 2

DETENTION OF LAND REVENUE.

At yesterday's meeting of the County Council the following letter from the Treasury was-read : Sir, —Referring to the recent.distribution amongst the counties in the Provincial District of Canterbury of the sum of LIOO,OOO, balance of surplus land revenue to 31st December, 1§77, under section 9 pf '■ The Financial Arrangements Act, 1876," I have the honor, by direction of the Colonial Treasurer, to explain as follows with respect to the sum of L 2209 15s 2d allotted to the County of Waitaki, which, you may have observed, is less than the sum the county is entitled to be credited with on the data ussd in previous distributions.

Under the Act I have quoted the surplus is div|sible thus : Three-fifths in the proportion of the areas of the several counties or parts of counties in the district, and two-fifths in the proportion of the subsidies payable to such several counties.

As the Counties of Waimate, Vincent, and Lake did not receive subsidies under the Act for the half-year ended 31st December, 1877, it was decided that they were not legally entitled to participate in the two-fifths of the surplus lancl revenue acGrqed during the sfvme period j and as regards that portion of the surplus paid over to the counties prior to the distribution which is the subject of this circular, these counties did not participate on the bases referred to.

But though the counties above mentioned did not receive subsidies under the Financial Arrangements Act—having collected no rates duping the year ended 31st March —they received them for the half-year ended 31st December, 1877, on rates collected to 31st October previous. The reasons assigned by the County Councils for having failed to qualify themselves to receive subsidy under the Act were such as, in the opinion of the Goyernrnent, tq warrant the payment of subsidies on rafes to 31st Qctqbe'r. Tney were, therefore, paid as "unauthorised expenditure," which was subsequently approved by Parliament. The Chairman of the Waimate County Council, in a letter of which a copy is enclosed, has pressed upon the Government the claijij of that ooupty to a share of twp-fifths of the sum of LIOO,OOO, proportionate to the subsidy paid as above; and the. Government, being desirous that the division of that sum should be fairly and equitably made (within the law), has decided, to retain for the present the moneys, amounting to LB4OB 18s 2d., to which Waimate and the other two counties in the same position would b§ entitled were their clairns admitted. The njoneys so retained oapnot be paid to these counties without the sanction of Parliament j '.but, before finally deciding on the course to be pursued, the Government desire, by means of this circular, to lay the case before the several local bodies interested, . jn order tq afford them an opportunity of expressing their views on the subject. Should the_ final decision be adverse to thp three counties, the amount now withheld will be credited to the other counties in the provincial district on the basis of the scheme of distribution; Road Boards in counties where the Counties Act was not in force prior to 31st December,

1877, receiving their share aa before.—l am &c. James C. Gavin. A similar letter was read with reference to the detention of L54,70113s 4d, land revenue of Ofcago to 31st December, 1877. In this it was stated that the sum of L 5427 12s 4d had been retained until the claims of the Maniototo, Tuapeka, Vincent, and Lake Counties had been considered. The Chairman said he had prepared a draft reply, which was read and adopted, as follows : Oamaru, Bth April, 1880. Sir, —I am in receipt of yours of date sth March, re distribution among the Counties in the Provincial District of Canterbury of the sum of LIOO,OOO, balance of surplus land revenue to 31st December, 1877. Also yours of date Bth March, as to distribution of the sum of L 54,791 13s 4d, balance of land fund (Otago) to 31st December, 1877. I now have the honor to reply that without wishing to take advantage of any technical point it appears to this Council that to the sum of LIOO,OOO the Counties of Waimate, Vincent, and Lake, and to the sum of L 54,791 13s 4d the Counties of Maniototo, Tuapeka, Vincent, and Lake have no legal claim whatever, and are not entitled to participate in the distribution of the above accrued land revenue. I therefore trust that this County will be credited with its full share of the amount at present retained by the Government, and that the said moneys ba equitably divided among the Counties entitled to it on the basis of previous distributions. —I am, &c., Duncan Sutherland, Chairman Waitaki County Council. The Hon. the Colonial Treasurer.