FIRE BRIGADES AND LOCAL AUTHORITIES SUBSIDIES BILLS.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXIX, Issue 826, 28 September 1906, Page 7

FIRE BRIGADES AND LOCAL AUTHORITIES SUBSIDIES BILLS.

REPORT BY THE 10WN CLERK. / The Town Clerk (Mr K. Brown) submitted the following report to the meeting of the Masterton Borough Counoil, ou Tuesday evening, ou the Fire Brigades and L ocal Authorities Subsidies Bills: I have received, through the kindaess of Mr A. W. Hogs;, M.H.R., copies of the following Bills, viz. 1. Fire Brigades (as reported from the Committee of the whole), now passed the House. 2. Local Authorities Subsidies. The Fire Brigades Bill has undergone the following alterationsA proviso to Clause 19 provides that the Board (Fire Board) shall be responsible to the local authority for any damoge wilfnlly or negligently caused by the Board or its officers (that is to any water mains, valves, etc.). The Bill constitutes the cities cf Auckland, Wellington, Christohurch and Dunedin, fire districts. With regard to other parts of the colony, fire district may he proclaimed on application of any Borough Council or other local authority, provided that before such application shall be made, a proposal tc do so must be carried at a poll of the ratepayers, and farther provided that such poll must be taken within one mo;:tb after receipt of a petitionsigned by not lops than 15 per Centum of the ratepayers, requiring that a flro district be rieolared. With respect totho ottaei provisions of the Bill no alteration has been made, but there are some anomalies that I desire to point out. The estimates of tbe Board are to be made to cover up to June 30th every year, and tbe bal-ance-sheets are to be made up to March 31st of every year. Tbe Board must meet in the month of June yearly to frame the estimates. These have afterwards to be submitted for the approval of the Minister on or before June 30th, and have no force oi effect until aj. Droved. The estimates ought to cover the financial year, tbe same as with boroughs, etc., and ought to be made early in March. Under the Bill as it now stands there will be caused still more delay in striking the rates of local bodies in fire districts. Section 16 of the Bill provides that a local authority may pay its contribution out of its general rate, or levy a rate not exceeding one penny in the pound on the annual rateable value of the rateable property in the distriot (where there are no buildings onehalf the rates to bi charged), but where the unimproved rating system is in force, the rate must be levied on valne ot the buildings and not on the land. The effeot of this is that in some districts rates will be paid on land without buildings, in other places such land wijl be exempt. The State Fire Insurance Department will contribute as an insurance company, and the Government will contribute in respect of Government buildings a sum equal to the amount that would be payable under section 16 if such buildings were rateable. This exempts Government land from contributing, whatever system is in force. The meaning of section 16 is obscure, the rateable power given is on annual valuw, but apparently where tbe unimproved system is adopted, the rate is on the annual value of th« improvements only. The Local Authorities Subsidies Bill, which was introduced' by the Premier, repeals the schedule to "The 'Local Bodies Finance and Poweru 'Aot, 1885," section 89 of <:, l'he Municipal Corporations Aot, 1900," and seotiun 8 of "The Municipal Corporations Act Amendment Act, 1902," and provides a definite plan for the calculation and distribution of subsidies. The new scheme appears to favour small boroughs where full rating rower is made use of. The minimum subsidy is £lB7 10a for boroughs (the same as formerly), and the maximum is £350 (£IOO less than formerly). The system, although improved in some respects, Jb somewhat complicated and involved. Under it subsidy is calculated on all rates—averaged from one to six farthings, subsidy ranging from one shilling on the first fartb ing to two shillings on tbe sixth and ,any remainder. As it affects the Masterton borough, the maximum amount of subsidy would be payable, wbicb would bo an inorease of about, £74. The larger oities are agitating for tbe increase of the maximum to £450, as before. If this is done, and tbe same plan of distribution maintained, then this borough would receive a subsidy of £450.