FINANCIAL POSITION OF THE BOROUGH.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXIX, Issue 8199, 1 August 1906, Page 5

FINANCIAL POSITION OF THE BOROUGH.

SPEECH BY THE MAYOR.

In a speech delivered at the meeting of the Masterton Borough Works Committee, last evening, tbe Mayor gave a summary of tbe work oarried oat in the Masterton Borougb during the past twelve months, and explained tbe financial position of th 6 Council up to the end of the financial year.

"To-night I am bringing down the 'Financial Statement of the Boruugb," said the Mayor in the course of his remarks, "though it may appear to you Bomewbat lace, but the routine of audit business frequently necessitates delay in these cases, and we did not receive the audited balance sheet until July 14th. ~; I will commence with a statement of the total income and expenditure in tbe whole of tue Borough accounts daring the past year. 1 will then deal with tbe balanoes of the several accounts at the beginning and end of the year, show- < ing afterwa,rds the net results of the year's workings. I propose next to show the position with regard to the public debt of tbe Borough and the amount addwd to it during the. year. I shall tben show the annual ohargea on the loans, for interest and sinking fund—in other words, the cost yearly to the ratepayers—and how thesa charges are met. After doing this I intend to explain the position of tbe sinking funds, and of the loans maturing next year, and the balanc° required to be raised to pay tbem off. 1 shall then deal briefly with the amount of rates received last year for comparison and the rates to be levied this year, and what is not required to be collected. You will understand tbat though the total amount of races received shows an increase over the previous year the increase refers only to special rates to provide for loans, and does not affect ratepayers outside the special areas. 1 mention thte matter at this stage beoause 1 find man; people do not understand tbat the general rate has not been increased. 1 shall complete my statement with a brief reference to tbe necessities of parts of the Borough not served with drainage and water. Total income and expenditure, to March 31st, 1906.—General Acoount, income £6,369 2a sd, expenditure £5,657 J.3a lOd; contractors' deposits, income £213, expenditure £493 ; Gasworks Account, income £59y6 lis Bd, expenditure £5,792 la sd; Waterworks Account, income £1,824 3s 4d; expenditure £1,615 7s; Library Account, income £375 15s Id, expenditure £491 8s 8d; Drainage Loan, income £5 Bs, expenditure £268 10s; Gasworks Loan, inconie 56, expenditure £lB4 6s 8d; Abattoir Loan, inoome £3,019 4s 9d, expendi t«re £2,091 6s 4d; Interest Account Sanitation Loan, income £632 14s '6d, expenditure £477 9s 4d; Interest Acoount Bannister Street Loan, inoome £lB3 6s 3d, expenditure £l2O 6s 3d. Totals, inoome £18,619 lis, expenditure £17,223 12s 3d. Balance of the several accounts at beginning and end of year.—-Gen-eral Account, dr, beginning £3,348 8s 2d, end £2,636 19s 7d dr; Deposit Account, or, beginning £422, end £142 or; Gasworks Acoount, cr, beginning £4BO 17s lid, end £684 18a 2d or; Waterworks Account, end £2OB 16s 4d cr; Public Library Aacount, or, beginning £7 10s 4d, end £IOB 3s 3d dr; Drainage /Loan Aocount, cr, beginning £404 8s sd, end £l4l 6s 5d or; Gasworks Loan Acoount or £lB4 Is 8d; Abattoir Loan Account, end £927 18s 5d cr; Interest Waterworks Loan Account, or, beginning £217 15s Id; luterest Sanitation Loan Aocount, dr, beginning £99 6s lOd, end £55 18s 4d or; Interest Bannister Street Loan Acoount, or, beginning £6O 17s sd, end £123 17s sd. Total balanoes at beginning of year, dr. £3,447 15s, or. £1,777 0s lOd. Total balanoes at end of year, dr. £2,745 2s lOd, or. £2,284 15s Id. Deorease of dr. balanoes 1906, £702 12s 2d. Increase of cr. balanoes 1906, £507 14s 3d. ' < Difference between nett overdraft at March 31st, 1905, and at Marob 31st, 1906—Nett overdraft, 1905, £2,259 4s 3d; 1906, £1,529 12s 7d. Reduction in overdraft at March 3lit, 1906, £729 lis Bd. Or taking the General Account only, the overdraft was reduced from £3,348 8s 2d in 1905 to £2,636 ! 19s 7d in 1906, a reduction of £7ll 8s 7d. Public Debt Total loans at March 315t—1905, £50,441 7s 6d; , 1906, £53,441 7s 6d. Abattoir loac , addition in year 1905 6, £3,000. Abattoir Loan—Since the close ol the year the remaining £I,OOO of the ! Abattoir Loan has been received. , Tbe £25,000 loen authorised to fc< , raised by the ratepayers will be taken i up during the next two years. I'ht , total public debt will then stand al ; £79,4*1 7a 6d. The present annua] charges on the loans amount tc £2,367 18s lOd, and this is met partly b.y special rates and partly ! out of Revenue Accounts, as foli lows:—Raised by special rates over part of Borough—Bannister Street , Loan of £2,300, over old east and '■ west wards; annual charges for in- , terest, £9O; for Sinking Fund, £3O. Drainage Loan over special area, not . quite including uld west ward, but i including, old east ward, £4-77 6s I lOd, including annual charge and ; Sinking Fund. Total annual charges raised by special rates, £597 6s lOd. By [ Revenue Accounts: Out of Gasworks Account interest, £537 10s; Sinking Fund, £212 10s. Out of Waterworks Acoount: interest, £7BO 12s, including Sinking Fund, Oat of Abattoir Account: interest, £200: Sinking Fund, £4O. Total annual charges paid out of Revenue Accounts, £1,770 12s. Sinking Funds.—Every one of uui 1 loans has a Sinking Fund. Tbe r Water and Drainage Loans have £ i ourrency of 41 years at per cent.. and at the end of that term these ' debts (£35,941 7s 6d) will be ex. 1 tinguished. The accumulated Sink | ing Funds for tbe other loans were, , at March 31st, 1906, £1,191 12s 4d. • made up as follows: Gasworks, Loan, £IO,OOO, £1,054 13s 3d; Gasworks Loan, £2,500, £76 Is , lid; Bannister Street Loan £2,000, £6O 17s 2d. The Gaaworkf i Loans of £IO,OOO and £2,500 maturi 1 in February, 1907, and the Sinking Funds for these loans may be eafci [ mated then to proddae £1,39' leaving a balance to be raised by J

new loan (by' Sbe'oial order) ot £ll,lOß. Total, £12,500. Rates, 1905 6.—The total ratesi received last year amounted to' £5,757 178 sd, an inoreaae of £605 0a Id over the previous year. The General rata was £24 increase,, caused by sub division of properties; the Library rate was £2l decrease;;. Water rate £237 inoreaae, through extension of water supply, and tbe Drainage rate accounts for the remainder np drainage rate having* been collected the previous year. Bates, 1906J-7. Thiß year the General rat« will remain at2J£d;'the. Library rate, tLe Water rate, and the Drainage interest rate, will be the same as last year, but it mill not te neiessary, nor will ii be desirable, to collect tbe special rate for the Bannister Street Loan, Interest and Sinking Fund, as the balance a* March 31st, 1906, to the* credit of that account is sufficient to pay tbe aanual charges for the year,. 1906-7. This course will afford relief to tbe ratepayers in the centre of the town, tbe outside ratepayers paying no speaial rates. The sewering and drainage of Kuripuni, and tbe remainder of the Borough,, is a highly necessary work, and one which we must face before long. This will necessitate tbe raising of a loan of £IO,OOO or £12,000, and will also open up the question of the more effective disposal of the sewage from the present system of drainage. When the drainage of tbe whole of the J,Borougb iscomplete we shall save the £2OO a year now paid for the removal of nigh' ?oil. In ncnolusion, I wish to congratulate the 1 Council on the financial cosition of the Borough at; the preseiit time, taking into consideration the great .amount ot works carried oat and the favourable* ter*ns on whinh tbe loans of the ' Borough have been floated. The ex~ ; penditure of the last authorised loan of £25,000 will be the means : of greatly increasing the improvements of the Borough, while the rates will only ri<ae gradually, and as a re-valuation will be made before tbe rates are levied, tbe burdens will be more evenly distributed among a larger number of ratepayers." | Cr Temple asked to what account the. £IOO received from Messrs; Staples and Co. in connection with the widening of Bannister Street bad been placed. Had it been placed towarls the wiping off ofjihe Bannister Street Loan? The Town Clerk replied that the moriej had been placed to tboGeneral Account to pay back thp. money taken out of tbat auoount to make the road. Cr Ewington congratulated the Mayor on the clear and precisemanner m which he had ex- ' plained tbe work oarried out in the. Boroagb during the past twelve months. The balance sheet was ordered tobe printed and circulated. The financial position of the Borough will be considered at the next meeting of the Council.