Extracts from County Auditor's Reports.

Lake Wakatip Mail, Issue 1586, 22 April 1887, Page 5

Extracts from County Auditor's Reports.

For year ending 31st March, ISBI (to chairman). There are one or two suggestions which I ha v o before verbal! v made to previous chairman of your Council, and which 1 would now respectfully ask you to take into consideration as has been done by a number of County Councils. First, as regards receipt ci revenue from licenses—for instance, publicans. It would afford, lam certain, great satisfaction to your clerk an.l treasurer, as well facilities for a satisfactory audit, if some meat s iould be devised of showing that all receipts from such sources ha I been duly accounted for. ... I wouid sugge-t that all licence forms and theirduplicates should be signed across the face by the chairman before issue, as well as by i-suer at time of i-sue. . . . From the forms to be so treated there mi.'lit t.e accepted doe licenses, which are accounted for to the auditor, but even in them it is advisable seme supervision should be exeiciscd. ... I find tb.it of the b"oks super, eded by the of the recent Act there is one which cannot be found. In regard to another considerable source of revenue, viz., rat'.a fairly complete check on the correctness of the receipts vvuuld be afforded by the simple exjK.iierit of laying before the Council, at each statutory meeting, a list of rate* uncollected ou :!lst .March previous, the total of which should accurately agree with th; sum shown in list of assets previously examined and certiied by the auditor. A very desirable iniprovcment in the conduct of your business, at lea-t from my ;>oint of view, would he opening of an account L'.ok, as used by many local bodies In this book are entered, ir: the order of receipt, all at counts against the Council up to date on winch the Finance Committee meets. . . Under date 22ml November, ISSI (to chairman). I have to call your attention to the largeness of the amount of rates uncollected on Until September ln.t. In my last rejiort 1 recommended that a detailed statement of rates iii urrear should be laid before the Council at the annual meeting for considering the balance sheet. . . . I have also to bring under vour notice that there has been great laxness in the pay ing over of moneys collected for dog tax, but a small portion of th«- sum received so far back as March last having been paid into book. Under date 31st July, ISS3 (to treasurer). I am glad to say that I have been able to certify to the correctness of your half-year accounts without any reservation. There are, however, one or two questions cl routine 011 which I desire to say a few words. Ist. In regatd to appropriation of moneys hy the Council, I hx* s seen that every voueiiT bear the signature either of your chairman 11 of the engineer. TliUis not sulti -ient to show that the Council have authorised payment. What I wou'd recommend is this, and it is the | lan in use by all large and well-conducted public bodies. An accent book should be kept, say, with the following columns . . . and I may point out to you that no expenditure is unless passed by the whole Council. . . . You ill see at page !H)'/ of the ledger a statement, of rates uncollected on .list March, l8s:j, amounting to J. 19S1 ills 9d. I think it is within the limits o: my ottiee (awl I am h»rne out b;/a rrcrumi knavn to ;/«»/, but widt h I ,i:< tl not in -ntioii) to r,r_"p upon you the necessity of con-ideiing the subject of rate collection. I may point out to you that rate 1 2-3. amounting; to £l:il8 13s Ud, was due on 4th .'uly, lSii'2, yet, 011 31st .MarJi, 18s3, there remained uiicollecte<l i:s>!9 15s ed. Even of rate !-,s 1 -•> there was at that ('ate iiOOi 17.s uncoil' ' ted. fhe clerk will be;are you detailed li.'tsof arrears. They are not quite correct, but suil'.uuttly so for the Council s use.