CITY RATE LEVY

Evening Post, Volume CXXVII, Issue 92, 20 April 1939, Page 5

CITY RATE LEVY

NO INCREASE TO BE MADE

BURDEN HEAVY ENOUGH

HOSPITAL CHARGE CRITICISED

Taking the view that the rate burden already is heavy enough,the Wellington City Council, in considering a draft of its estimates for the current year, last night decided that its levy should remain the same as for last year. The increase in the hospital rate was criticised and the view expressed that the time had arrived when the hospital system should be taken over nationally.

The Mayor (Mr. T. C. A. Hislop) said that the opinion of the estimates committee was that the general rate burden was as high as citizens could reasonably be expected to bear. Councillor W. Appleton: Hear, hear. Under the circumstances, continued the Mayor, the committee thought that the Corporation's expenditure should be kept down to the closest possible margin and therefore it recommended that the general rate the council struck should be the same as for last year. That, of course, did not cover the whole charge citizens ultimately would have to meet, because there was the outside charge, the hospital payment. The council would like to see the rate it struck lower, but that was impossible in a developing city like Wellington. In the next year, for example, additional houses would be going up and they would require additional services of all types. People spoke of the increase in the total rate collected and it was quite true that the increase had been very substantial, but it had to be remembered that all the charges that had to be met in order to carry out the various services had increased very consider- i ably, and to do the same amount of work today as the Corporation did a year or two ago cost more money. There could be no question that the Corporation had to carry on all its activities. He was satisfied that the amounts the committee suggested to the various committees for discussion were sufficient to meet reasonable requirements. Some things had to be left out because their cloth had to be cut according to their means. THE HOSPITAL LEVY. Dealing with the additional charge citizens were asked by the Hospital Board to meet, the Mayor said it appeared to him to be clear as long ago as November, 1937, that the scheme the Hospital Board contemplated putting into operation must mean a very substantial increase in the rate charge of the city. When in November, 1937, he spoke at the Hospital Board meeting and put before the board what he believed to be the additional charges ■ that would arise if the scheme as then envisaged was carried out, he said it must lead to an increase in the charge on the city of from £121,000 to £122,000. That was after the moneys had been raised and the scheme had been carried out. Although no official intimation had yet been received by the council, he had seen from the Press reports that the charge to be made on the city without the scheme having been put into operation was £116,455 —only £5000 less than the amount he had suggested in November, 1937, would be the least that would be reached. He thought that showed'his estimate was pretty accurate, although when it was made the chairman of the board, whom -he respected highly personally but disagreed with on certain aspects of this matter, said that it was regrettable that men in leading positions should make public utterances without first becoming conversant with the facts. The answer to that was that the figure of £116,000 showed that the council's knowledge of the facts was not very far out. INCREASE OF 5.3 PER CENT. The hospital levy on the council of about £32,000 more than last year meant an increase in the total rates levy of 5.3 per cent. He ventured to say that if the council itself raised the rates by 5 per cent, there would be an outcry all over the city, but now through the operations of the Hospital Board there was to be an increase in the rate levy on citizens of over 5 per cent. "I do think," said the Mayor, "that when the levy reaches £116,000 —without the scheme having come into operation —on the ratepayers alone of this city, it shows that the irhole system of taxation for hospital purposes should be revised, and I think that would be a matter to bring up at a later stage. "I think, too, that we should make representations along the lines of bringing about, so far as we can do it, a complete revision of hospital taxation, because I think that the everincreasdng burden put on the property owner alone is becoming far too high for him to bear and it is cutting down our margin and preventing us from raising money for necessary city development." PAST YEAR'S OPERATIONS. The past year of the council's operations, continued the Mayor, had ended with a surplus of £15,793. That, he thought, was a very satisfactory position to have again achieved. It was contributed to very largely by the fact that there was a record collection of rates and they were able to get in a great many of the arrears. In fact, the amount outstanding had been so reduced that they had not got the same reservoir of unpaid back rates to draw upon in the future. In addition, the various rents came in very well and the result was that they were able to meet very substantial = expenditure in all civic works. This year the estimated receipts were £843,776. There were various payments that had to be made outside the votes for the committees and these payments would account for £557,886 That would leave, on the figures submitted, a total available for the committees of £285,890, which was the total amount expended by them last year. The committee recommended that the rate be the same as for last year, and that £285,890 be the lump sum to be expended among the committees. The Mayor suggested that the committees work their estimates in the same proportion as their estimated expenditure for last year, not the same amount as they actually expended last year because that would be unfair; some of the committees had kept within their estimates and some had gone outside. METHOD OF BUDGETING. Councillor P. M. Butler said 'hat the method of budgeting was wrong; he

had protested against it year after | year. Last year the works committee j had had £3000 only for all works, other than purely maintenance works, in the suburban districts. It was quite wrong to adopt any method of estimating, the aim of which was to bring down a credit balance at the end of the year in figures. The real balance should take into account service to the citizens as well as finance. At least £3000 more was required to bring the refuse collection system up to date. The Mayor: Where are you going to get the money from?Councillor Butler: The money is there; it is only a question of apportionment. Councillor T. Brindle said that he agreed with Councillor Butler that the works committee should have a larger amount. He thought that it was a shocking thing that when a new Central Library was within a few weeks of opening, the same amount should be set aside as last year. The Mayor said that it might be possible to find an additional amount later in the year. HOSPITAL LEVY EVER HIGHER. While the hospital levy went higher and higher, the less there could be for roads and other city needs, said Councillor L. McKenzie. The ratepayers did not find the whole of the amount expended upon hospital service, said Councillor C. H. Chapman, M.P., for one half came from the Consolidated Fund. He did not agree that the estimating had been remarkably close. Last year there was a difference, for instance, of £44,000 between the low estimate of receipts and the actual receipts. It would be reasonable to expect correspondingly greater receipts during the coming year, under quite a number of headings. HOSPITAL BOARD IN DARK. Councillor W. Appleton, seconding the motion, said he thought that at the appropriate time the council should give consideration to the question of referring back the hospital levy to the Hospital Board for further consideration. He referred to various items in the Hospital Board estimates and expressed the view that in view of the Social Security Act the board was in some respects working in the dark; the board was not in the position of knowing the full impact of the Social Security scheme. The whole thing was in the melting-pot as far as the hospital service was concerned. He agreed that the hospital system should be taken over nationally. Wellington, with its better medical facilities, naturally had a big percentage of patients from the country districts. The hospital system at present was too i great a burden on local bodies, and it was unfair. He agreed that in justice to citizens they could not ask for a higher rate at present, but at the same time, as far as the works department was concerned, there were footpaths, roads, and other matters calling for attention. The new houses built in the last twelve months alone really required nearly a gang^ of street cleaners to service them and that would cost £2000 to £2500. That would give-some idea of what they were up against. Also, there were parts of the city which were still without drainage. That was shocking in a city like Wellington. However, at present the burden on the ratepayers was high enough. The only way he could see to deal with the city's needs adequately would be again to place before the ratepayers the question of a loan which would enable more of these jobs to be tackled, because that could not be done from the limited finances the council had. Councillor T. Forsyth said that he thought the course proposed was essentially the sound one. Though he agreed that the works committee should have a larger share, a position had now been reached when the rates could not go any higher. • Councillor K. McKeen, M.P., said that he felt, with Councillor Chapman, that the estimates of receipts would be exceeded. It was an undoubted fact that during the coming year very heavy demands would be made upon the city services. No one wanted i-o increase the rates, and he thought they should try to struggle through on the same amount as last year, but that later m the year the estimates should be reviewed, when those committees which needed a greater share should receive further consideration. SYSTEM SHOULD BE CHANGED. The Municipal Association should urge that the Government should take over the whole hospital system, said Councillor R. A. Wright. The wealthy ratepayers "did not feel the increase in rates nearly so severely as small ratepayers—and rentpayers. There were scores of shopkeepers in Wellington—rentpayers —who would feel the increased rate' heavily. The Centennial Exhibition had been very generously treated, with £3500 for the Provincial Court and £5000 for accommodation, and just under £2000 for the provincial memorial. Perhaps it was inevitable, but it certainly was generous. Mr. Hislop remarked that the £5000 for accommodation would come up for review. It would probably bring a very good return. Talk about hospitals was not going to help the position at all, said Councillor A. Black. The Ratepayers' Association, which was making most fuss, consisted of "about five old men" and did not represent 'the real ratepayers of Wellington at all. He agreed that the works committee must have more funds if essential city works were to be carried out. In every suburb there were long overdue works which again would have to be deferred. Nationalisation of hospital services would in the long run probably mean a more expensive system, for every little district would demand a hospital of its own.

Councillor R. L. Macalister upheld the recommendation of the estimates committee. The counciJ had the unpleasant duty of passing on to the ratepayers the increasing demands of the Hospital Board, and next year the demand would be much heavier again, unless in the n.eantime the whole basis was reorganised. The Mayor said that he was glad that not one councillor had advocated an increase in the rate. As the year

went on and requirements o± the various committees became more clearcut, the allocations ct-uld be reconsidered. The recommendation of the estimates committee was adopted and the several committees will now work out

The recommendation of the estimates committee was adopted and the several committees will now work out the detail expenditures within the amounts fixed by the general recommendation.