GREY COUNTY ESTIMATES

Greymouth Evening Star, 1 August 1946, Page 9

GREY COUNTY ESTIMATES

EXPENDITURE TOTALS MORE THAN £55,000 IMPOSITION OF FULL RATE To meet an estimated expenditure of £55,143 this year, ratepayers in the Grey County will be asked to pay the full rate of 3d in the £. according to a decision reached by the Grey County Council at its meeting this morning. This levy will raise the sum of £10,065.

Commenting on the estimates of receipts and expenditure, the chairman, Mr. J. W. Hannan, pointed out that salaries would be covered by £lOOO instead of £l5OO, this being due to the fact that an engineer had not been engaged following the death of Mr. J. Higgins. An interesting item was that dealing with machinery, maintenance and plant. Last year, £3464 had been spent and this year £3356 was the estimate. At present the council’s plant was in a bad state and there was not much likelihood of the expenditure under this heading being reduced. He pointed out that if the council’s expenditure could be reduced by £BOO it would mean that rates could be reduced by ,’d in the £. Even so, in view of the difficulty being experienced in connection with Public Works Department subsidies for flood damage etc., it would hardly be wise to do so, otherwise it might be pointed out that the council was not rating up to its limit. The chairman added that the Catchment Board rate was being’ paid from general rates this year, though it was probable that a special rate would have to be struck in the future. Provision had been made for the reported subsidy from the Government on. hospital levies. The'following are the estimates of receipts and expenditure for the year ended April 1, 1947:— Expenditure:—Main highways £17,164, county roads £10,367, Government grants £5217, works general £l7OO, machinery petrol £l9OO, machinery, maintenance and plant £3356, employment schemes £lBOO, hospital levy £6380, Westland Catchment Board rate £314, interest and sinking fund £194, heavy traffic apportionment £1660, salaries £l5OO. general expenditure £3591, total £55,143. The sums available for expenditure are as follows: —Cash in hand and at bank £ 1684, subsidy on rates £6OO, vehicle licences £4OOO, sundry licences £4lO, royalties and rents £7O, sales, material and hire £450, compensation refunds £l5O, State forests £3600, halves and thirds £330, goldfields £3600, employment scheme refunds £1617, main highway refunds £14,090, Government grants £4190. miscellaneous rates: Coal Creek flood protection rate, South Beach, special district rate, Blackball special district rate £219, Taramakau Settlement works rate £45, sundry £2073, hospital subsidy on levy £1950, hire account £6000; total £45,078. Additional sum required (rates) £10,065. Grand total £55 143. The clerk (Miss E. M. Heaphy) reported that the total rateable value of property on' the valuation roll was £805.269.