CITY COUNCIL.

Evening Star, Issue 7656, 5 July 1888, Page 2

CITY COUNCIL.

A special meeting of the City Council was held at noon to-day, which was attended by His Worship the Mayor, Crs Barron, Lee Smith, Kimbell, Carroll, Sinclair, Cohen, Cramond, Hardy, and Solomon.

The business for consideration was a communication (through Mr H. Livingston, examiner of accounts) from the AuditorGeneral re the balance-sheet, which read as follows :

I am directed by the Controller and AuditorGeneral to hand you the enclosed sheets showing the form which the intere?t and Binking fund accounts should take. The Auditor-General wishes that you would explain the principle on which the cemeterieß account is debited with L 1,200, or at the rate of L2OO per annum, for charges and salaries, which seems a large proportion of T/1,54117s Id—salaries ,A' the municipal department for ISS7-S8 —and a very latge percentage of the receipts on cemeteries' account. I hand you a circular from the Auditor-General to mayors of cities and borough*. Will you kindly make out a statement of assets and liabilities in accordance with the views cxpresned in that statement.

1 am direcW especially to call jonr attention to the fact of your overdraft being in excess of the amount sanctioned by the and to say that until some natisfactoiy explanation is given the Auditor-General will be compelled to take the tteps enjoined by the Act for the recovery of such excess. The Town Clerk read his report upon the communication, which was as follows:

July fi, 1888. His Worship the Mayor and Councillors of the City of Dunedin.

Gentlemen,—On Monday afternoon, the 2nd in-1 .Mr 11. Livingston, examiner of accounts, by diieoii >n of the Controller and Auditor-General, handed in a letter relating to the City accounts. The first matter refers to suggested slight additions to the statement of interest and sinking fund accounts, which have been made in the printed balance-sheet now submitted. An explanation is desired as to the sum of L2OO per annum, the office charges and salaries for managing the two Dunedin cemeteries, which the controller considers a very large percentage on the receipts on cemeteries' account.

In fixing the said Rum'the Council considered the work to be perfoimed more than the receipts on account. The former includes preparation of plans, surveying, and pitting the ground in small allotments; keeping a comp.ete register of ground, sales, an elaborate record of interments, the issue of titles of purchase and warrants for interment; the occasional settlement of complicated claims and conducting a large correspondence, all involving a considerable amount of time und careful attention. On the other hand, the scale of charges for purchase of ground and the interment fees are exceptionally moderate, so as to press as lightly as possible on the public. With regard to the assets and liabilities, the statements submitted are prepared in the manner they have always been since the Council adopted the system of book-keeping now in use; they are an essential part of the balance-sheets, and conform to the requirements of section 169, sub-clause 1 of the Municipal Corporations Act, IHBo—any abridgement would necessarily impair the completeness of the balance-sheets, and be at variance with the style of hojk-keeping, the soundness of which experience confirms.

However, I see no objection, if insisted on, to make a supplementary list of asfets and liabilities of such ikmsonlyas the Contr< Il<r may indicate. As to the overdraft I do not think the Council has exceeded the extent to which it may overdraw, and the Controller gives no reasons for saying the overdraft is in excess of the amount authorised by law.—l am, etc., Ai'iaii Gibson, Town Clerk.

His Worship thought the communication should have come direct to the Town Clerk, instead of through the auditor. As to their liability being in exceea of their revenue, such was not the case, as, with the amount which they had received back from the sinking fund, their position at the end of the year, if things kept as they were, would be LI ,000 better than last year. It seemed that the Auditor-General wished them to keep the books of the Council in an entirely diflerent manner, which would necessarily upset the routine of the office. The auditors, in making their report, said that the system of keeping the booka could not be better, aud if they had, at the dictum of the AuditorCeneral, to change thatj system of bookkeeping, it would entail great inconvenience, as in a couple of months' time they would have the half-yearly balance round again. CrSisci.Aißthoughtthat the report drawn up by Mrfiibson wai very olear, and that nothing better could be designed. He would move—" That a reply be sent to the AnditorCeneral in accordance with the Town Clerk's report." Circumstances had proved that it would have been better had they retained their own auditors. It certainly would involve great expense if they were com pel led to rearrange their system of honk-Lceping a syntei.il which the auditors had invariably pionoimoed to be us perfect as possible. Cr' Cai:koi,i., in seconding the motion, considered the report very satisfactory. He could not help thinking that the change in the manner of audit was not a change for the better, ami thought that at least one auditor should be elected by the Corporation.

Cr Kimuki.i. supported the motion, and in doing so wished to protest against the manner in which the Council had been treated by the Government, They had been put to great inconvenience, and thought it was a mistake to allow the Government to take away the right from the Corporation of managing its own accounts. They had found, as.uaual, that Government interference had not improved matters. From what he had seen in the Press, a measure was being introduced by Parliament which would totally upset our finances, and the Council should protest against this interference. Cr Cojikn was of opinion the resolution did not go far enough. The Council should carry a resolution expressing its great dissatisfaction with the existing system of audit. The expenditure on the cemeteries was not a matter for the Controller's Department, but' was one between the Corporation and the ratepayers. Dissatisfaction with the present audit system was general "throughout the colony, and if the Council expressed .their opinion of it they would be backed up by other Councils. Cr Smitu expressed his entire sympathy with the motion. There was no question that in going into the accounts, and seeing exactly how the affairs of the town stood, ,they were found to be quite simple. There were two objections whioh the Controller-General took to the accounts. The first related to the charge of L2OO a.year in keeping the cemetery books. Mr Gibson had dealt very ably with that question. There were many departments of work which, if charged for exactly in proportion to the amount of returns, would show a very much larger proportion than the cemetery one did. With regard to the question of excessive overdraft, the limit the City was entitled to by reason of its revenues came before the Council two years ago, when they were more overdrawn than they were now, and it was clearly shown by their solicitors that they were not in excess of the limit. In making the charge the Controller-General should have shown wherein they had exceeded. Cr Barron' did not think the Council would hesitate in adopting Cr Cohen's suggestion. I—J The Mayor thoughtjthe Auditor-General's: action a very ■ arbitrary proceeding' and concurred with Cr Cohen that they should send up a strong protest against what. had been done. Cr Sinclair's motion was then put and carried unanimously. Cr Cohen said he understood the Council were in favor of further action being taken. He accordingly moved—"That this Council deprecate the delay which has occurred in auditing the Corporation accounts by the Auditor • General's Department, strongly condemn the exist- i ing system as carried out by that department, and urge' the City members of, the House of Representatives to endeavor,, when fchc 'Municipal Corporations Bill is under consideration, to obtain a system of; audit more economioal, more expeditious,! and satisfactory to the ratepayers of this; city." Cr Cramond seconded the motion, whiph was ca'rrcil'unanimou'sly, after 'a short discussion, •