COUNTY FINANCES.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume L, Issue 59, 10 April 1907, Page 3

COUNTY FINANCES.

CHAIRMAN'S REPORT. ! Mr J. Brown, chairman of the Taranaki County Council, placed the unaudited 'n et for U " : > ,car March Jlst, IUO7, on the table for the information of the Councillors. lf e explained the figures as foliows:— UKNDRAIi ACCOUNT. Compared with the previous year the receipts on general account increased by £(4B, the increase in the general rates foi the year under review accounting for more thau the increased revenue, being £IOOB in excess of the amount collected for the previous period. Turning to the expenditure, the amount expended during the current year exceeded last year's expenditure by £1052. The amount spent 011 public works was considerable, being £0057, as compared with £4330 for the previous year an increase of £1721. The roads'had'been exceptionally well treated, having received over £IOOO more than the preceding year, in addition to which new works of a permanent character had the following sums expended on them out of viz.:—Maketehimau ferro-con-erete bridge, £475, completed ; Tapuae deviation, £432, in progress; Deviation Slippery Hill, Junction road, i£4o7, completed; Okato footpaths, £SO, completed?ulvert tunnel Tapuae, £72, completedinvert tunnel Avalanch Creek, Tnriki' £3O, completed; culvert tunnel \\ Tat'on',s gully, and Loouey's creek, £SO lompleted. ' ■SUBSIDIES, lload Boards appeared to have been tenerously subsidised to the extent of •tJuo 8/1 as compared with '£ll3 11/4 or the preceding vear. OVERDRAFT. The interest 011 overdraft had been reluced from £250 to £l3B, a saving of £llß, indicating that the progress had leen general throughout the year. The nerdraft the end of the iinanci ilj 'ear stood at £512 13s, which hd hought he migflit safely term a "r>ord" for the County of Taranaki BRIDGE LOAN. The Council made more use'of the 'ridge loan last year than hitherto, jonn moneys were expended on various ralges as follows;—Tapuae, £453, contracting; Oakura, £0!I7, constructing; 'iakiiu, £750, ferro-concrete, completed; Vaiongona, £043, ferro-eoncrtift, cumleted; Manganui, £l7g, ferro-concrete. onstrueting; Waiwakaiho. £203. ferrooiierete, constructing. Total X2U7S. Tile total amount of bridge loan reei\ed from tile Irca-urv in rebuilding 'ridges was £8122; amount applied for ml yet received C 2200: toiai ■f £10322. wlrch when received from (he 'reasnrv would still leave a balance of £2578 available for rebuilding additionI bridges. A pleasant feature of the 'resent scheme of reconstructing bridges nd one inaugurated by the sitting Comiil, was the introduction of the ferroonerele structures which were so far eting admirably, the initial co"t being i» greater than steel. RATIOS COLLICCTICD. A further improvement in the collect - on of rates was efi'eeted. For the year i)OS-l!in(i there wen- !)'/, per cent, of the •atcs oul standing; this had been reluced to (></, pel- cent, for the present rear. The Omnia riding seemed to be the irineipal defaulter 111 this respc-t, havng 10'/, per cent of the current vear's •ates un])aid. Wnitara Riding (i per cent, md Moa Riding 3% per cenl. MKTAL. During the year there were 11.7U2 cards of metal placed 011 the roads dis-. :rihuted as follows:—Moa Riding, 4530 raids average cost 7/3 per yard; Wai;ara Riding, 2775 yards average cost i/5 per yard; Omata Riding, 4448 yards iverage cost G/5 per yard; the average ;ost. over the whole of the county being i/5 per yard. The highest price paid >er yard was 10/7 in the Moa riding and lie lowest price 3/3 in the Waitara riving. The highest average cost per yard II the Moa riding might to a certa Vu' ■xtent be accounted for through the •rushing plant being unable to proceed ;o that portion of the County owing to :he dilapidated state of the bridges in ,hat riding. (IKNKRAL. Xo event of an extraordinary nature [iad transpired withm the county during the year except that the vehicle licen•diw by-laws which proved such u costly matter to bring into force were, qua-died iu a lest case at Inglewood. The Council had established bv test case their lec;al right to collect the liltham road special rat", and a similar ease would be taken, in connection with the Tariki Road snecial rate. The Council undertook the lighting of tile Devon Road, including Fitzrov; J but as practically the whole of the llenui Road District bail now been constituted a town district no fi'e-li liabilities would be incurred in this connection. Cr Tale, ex-chnirnian, claimed that his action in striking tile higher rate, against the opinion of several members, was responsible lo a large degree for (lie satisfactory state of finance. Then tiie collection «f the Eltliam road »|ieeial rate wa- relieving (be finance- of a Jug drain, which should have been avoided bv previous Connc Is. It was worthy of note, too, that Mr Hllis bad succeeded Iu gelling in a lot of rates that the connciMuid written oil'—a legacy from a former Council. With economical man•iwinent a credit balance could be obtained at Jim end of the next linancial Cr Hill considered the linancial position reflected irreat credit on the county clerk, Ml' Kills. (Hear, hear).