RATES BURDEN

Dominion, Volume 24, Issue 64, 9 December 1930, Page 12

RATES BURDEN

Civic Administration SPECIAL ORDER LOANS “Pace Must be Slackened” RATEPAYERS PROTEST Objection to the principle of local authorities borrowing money without the sanction of the ratepayers is one of the main planks of the Wellington City Ratepayers’ Association, according to a statement made by the president, Mr. H. 11. Miller, at the quarterly meeting last evening. Declaring that the pace must be slackened. Mr. Miller said that business men had already found that between the graspings of Government and the impositions of the City Council there was little business left. There never had been a period when greater care was necessary in the choice of Mayor and council than was the case to-day, said Mr. Miller. The civic debt was almost staggering. The rates bad risen far beyond what business people could stand. The 'dangerous practice of raising loans without the sanction of ratepayers had grown to scandal point. Municipal administration expenses were tremendously high and tramway control was quite an autocracy. “Probably* few of you are aware that the cost of administration in Wellington is far in excess of that of Auckland,” said Mr. Miller. “It might also interest you to know that during the past four years much the larger portion of civic loan money has been raised by special order, a very small portion of the total receiving the sanction of the ratepayers. Then, too, in addition to the tremendously heavy rate burden, the recent electric change-over has cost business and residential ratepayers an immense sum of money. As an illustration a firm with whom I am acquainted and whose frontage to the main street is but 26 feet, had to meet a change-over cost of more than £2OO, and what have they got for it?—greater consumption and a perpetual breakage of lamps. Business Necessity.

“With hospital rates at over £61,000 per annum, bringing general and other rates up to £526,000 and municipal extravagance the order of the day, it is apparent that such a body as the Wellington City Ratepayers’ Association is a business necessity. If you continue to be apathetic you will find before long that your rates will become a veritable rent.”

Mr. Miller said that the total rates at March, 1929, were £434,035; at March, 1930, £502,802; at March, 1931 (estimated figure), £524,681—-a rise in two years of £91,000. The chairman announced that in response to a request by the association for details as to how it proposed to spend the £50,000 which was to be raised by “special order,” the City Council bad replied that the money was required for the acquisition of properties in connection with access to the eastern and western suburbs and for property in streets in which building line by-laws were at present in force. Mr. J. D. Sievwright said that the advertisement in regard to the loan occupied a very small space in the newspapers, and he doubted whether oue person in a thousand had seen it. The city’s burden of debt, in his opinion, was growing out of all proportion to the power of the ratepayers to pay the bill. According to figures published in the local bodies’ handbook, the city’s debt at March 31, 1930, was £4,790,560. This represented an increase of £735,000 during the last three years.

“Special Order” Loans. Mr. Sievwright said that in 1926-27, or thereabouts, the council instituted a “special order” method of raising money. In the Mayor’s term the following loans had been raised by the authority of the ratepayers:—Street paving, 1927 (10 per cent, in 1925 authority), £20,000; footpaths, 1927, £63,000; paving, 1927, £lOO,000; public conveniences, 1927, £26,875; Kelburn viaduct, 1929, £24,000; a total of £234,075.

By “special orders” the following loans were raised:—Karori drainage completion, 1926 (Board of Health and 10 per cent.), £13,900: Onslow drainage completion, 1926 (Board of Health and 10 per eent.), £18,700; Miramar and Seatoun Heights drainage and water (Board of Health), £26,500; unemployment relief, 1927, £12,000; unemployment relief, 1927, £4000; unemployment relief, 1927, £10,000; unemployment relief, 1927, £26,000; Hutt bridge, 1928 (city s share), £5800: unemployment relief, No. 1, 1928. £10.000; unemployment relief, No 2, 1928, £15,000; unemployment relief, No. 3, 1928, £10,000; street widening. 1928, £150,000; street widening, No. 2 1928. £50,000; drainage and sewerage. 1928 (Board of Health. Miramar and suburban areas), £148,700; Wellington city and suburban water, 1929 (city s share, approx.), £10,000; Seatoun, Kdbirnie and Island Bay wafer and dramage, 1929. £38,000; street widening. No. 1 1929, £50.000; street widening. No. 2, 1929. £50,000; unemployment relief, No. 1 1929, £25,000; unemployment rebel, No 2 1929, £20,000; unemployment relief No. 3, 1929. £15,000: unemployment relief No. 4, 1929, £21,000; a total of £759,600.

“We have been told repeatedly Eiat no more loans were to be .raised, saul Mr. Miller. “Apparently this £oo,ooo loan is the last dying ember of a very strong fire that has been burning. The following motion, moved by Ml. Sievwright, was carried unanimously. “That this meeting, having observed that the City Council is againi raising a further loan of £50,000 by ‘special order,’ and without asking for the ratepayers’ sanction, desires to enter its emphatic protest against such proceeding, and requests the Loans Board should withhold its sanction to such loan, having regard to the fact that the biurden of the city s debt now exceeds six millions ster-

ling.” The following were elected vice-presi-dents of the association:—Sir Harold Beauchamp, Sir John Luke, Mr. A de Bath Brandon, sen.. Dr. J. S. Elliott, Messrs. D. E. Ewen, Gerald Fitzgerald. Sidney Kirkealdie. Geo. Shirtcliffe, and A. P.‘Smith. . , .. Addresses were also given by Councilolrs C D. Morpeth and W. J. Gaudin.