HOSPITAL LEVIES

Manawatu Standard, Volume LIV, Issue 117, 17 April 1934, Page 6

HOSPITAL LEVIES

increase this year. LOCAL BODIES’ SHARE. Maintenance levies of £2l 515 lGs Id for the financial year 1934-30, as compound with £18,852 14s 9d for IJJ3Q 4. an oaoit-al levies of i/xo/J os Lu. as'compared with £1073 16s 8d last, yectr wore decided upon by the 1 nimerston North Hospital Boaid at its meeting yesterday afternoon when estimates for the year were framed. The levies show increases ot £2bb3 2s 8d for maintenance and £1305 9s 10c for capital charges. The allocation of these levies among bodies in the board’s area, proportionate to valuation, is as follows: MAINTENANCE LEVIES.

Comparative figures for valuations in the local body areas concerned are as follow :

Air D Collis said that the new valuation of the Kairanga County Council was to take effect from April 1. The position regarding the Hospital Board levy had been foreseen, and tlie position seemed unfair to levy on the old figures. The chairman (Air J. H. Hornblow) said the position was regretted, bur the board had to act according to the law, and its levies were based on the values at Alarch 31 last. Air A. E. Alansford said that Palmerston North, which was facing a total levy increase of £3-117 14s Id this year, had 3>een waiting for a revaluation for four years. Not having received this, it had to pay on the old high rate. “I would like, firstly, to draw attention to the fact that in the maintenance account this board opened the year with an overdraft of £6418 16s 2d, and finished the year with an overdraft of £7121 15s 3d,” said the managingsecretary (Air A. J. Phillipps), in an explanatory statement covering the estimates. “As members are aware,” he added, “there is a statutory provision which requires that the overdraft of a hospital board at the end of a year shall not exceed the amounts of levy and subsidy which are outstanding from the local bodies. This statutory provision has not been complied with again this year and it will be necessary for legislation to be obtained to validate the present overdraft. “These estimates have been drawn with due regard to the present difficulty in securing an increased Government subsidy and increasing local rates. Tlie total Hospital Board levies cm this district for the past six years have been as follow :—1928-29, £25,300 ; 1929-30, £25,500; 1930-31, £26,376; 1931-32, £23,826; 1932-33, £21,302; 1933-34, £19,926; proposed 1934-35, £23,895. The foregoing enables a comparison to be made between the reductions that have been granted during the past three years and the increase now proposed. “It must be pointed out that this board’s work is annually increasing and the demands made for hospital inpatient treatment, for outpatient treatment, for X-ray service and massage service are all increasing ones. On the charitable aid side the number of applications being received for assistance is annually showing an increase. District nursing activities have also increased during the past few years. Despite all these factors, the board has granted substantial reductions in levies each yfear since 1930. This board has carried reduction of expenditure further than any other of the large hospital boards in New Zealand. It must be pointed out that prior to the retrenchment which commenced three years ago the board was showing low operating costs which had been favourably commented upon by the department, and this, of course, made it harder to reduce costs than was the case with most other hospitals. The increase in levies is necessary this year to enable the board to liquidate its present bank overdraft. No increase in levy would be necessary for the current year’s maintenance requirements •J it were not for the accumulated deficit. “One feature of tlie financial statement for the year just ended, which is worthy of special comment, is the fact that the patients’ fees estimate has been exceeded by £590 16s 9d and the collections apart from sanatorium fees have exceeded the collections for the previous year by £589 7s Id.”

1933-34. 1934-35 Local Authority. £ s d £ 3 a Kiwitea County . 1,977 18 6 1,850 c 0 Pohangina 745 869 3 County 4 5 o Manawatu 2,477 19 County 2,127 7 9 4 Oroua County ... 1,852 3 6 2,156 12 0 Kairanga County Horowhenua 2,841 2 9 3,302 16 3,505 16 County 3,035 b 0 2 Feilding Borough Palmerston North 864 3 3 1,001 0 5,274 14 c City 4,484 17 7 0 Foxton Borough . 153 17 7 173 13 9 Shannon Borough 98 2 2 113 11 9 Levin Borough ... 459 9 1 539 6 I Otaki Borough ... 188 13 7 217 3 - Rongotea Town Board 24 9 7 23 9 iu Totals 18,852 14 9 21,515 16 i CAPITAL LEVIES. 1933-34. 1934-35. Local Authority. £ s d £ a a Kiwitea County . 112 lb 3 204 12 0 Pohangina County 42 9 0 95 2 6 274 0 County 121 b 5 6 Oroua County ... 105 10 0 23d 9 10 Ivairanga County 161 16 6 306 4 10 Horowhenua 172 17 387 14 County 8 0 Feilding Borough 49 4 5 110 14 0 Palmerston North City 255 9 0 583 6 2 Foxton Borough . 8 15 3 19 15 2 Shannon Borough 5 11 10 , 7 Levin Borough ... 26 b 5 Otaki Borough ... 10 15 0 Rongotea Town Board 1 7 11 3 3 0 Totals 1,073 16 8 2,379 6 5

VALUATIONS. Local Authority. 1933-34 £ 1934-35. £ Kiwitea County Pohangina County ... Manawatu County 3,248,314 1,223,865 3,493,772 3,041,794 2,605,360 1,224,550 3,490,066 3,037,445 Kairanga County Horowlienua County . Feilding Borough ... 4,665,947 4,984,739 1,419,197 4,651,310 4,937,721 1,409,893 Palmerston North 7,365,436 7,429,131 Foxton Borough Shannon Borough ... Levin Borough Otaki Borough - Rongotea Town Board 252,713 161,125 754,558 309,865 40,202 251,656 159,980 759,576 305,833 40,123 Totals 30,961,527 30,303,704