THOROUGH OVERHAUL

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19340, 2 June 1937, Page 14

THOROUGH OVERHAUL

AFFAIRS OF THE BOROUGH CR. N. H. BULL’S PROPOSAL CONSIDERATIOX A PPROYEI) The appointment of an independent expert to submit the affairs of the borough to a thorough investigation will be considered by the Gisborne 'Borough Council in committee at a meeting to be held within three months'. 1 This was agreed to last night on the motion of Or. N. 11. Bull, Who brought forward .a proposal .on sirni lar lines to that which' he had made some time previously. Tn placing his proposal before the meeting, lie reviewed the estimates, which.lie said, were somewhat difficult to follow. lie proposed to endeavour to discuss them in a manner in which the man in the street could understand. mentioning that the total expenditure providcti for was £81,26b, of which £48,731 would be spent from the general account and £32,1535 on debt services. “This means,” lie said, “that with a population of approximately i 4,000 people we are spending in borough administration alone, £5 10s to £6 a head for everv man, woman and child in the Borough of Gisborne. “No doubt, as in the past, ministrative staff has wisely estimated receipts on the low side and expenditure on the high side, but it is dear that approximately £4OOO more will be spent this year than last. “The main source from which the increased revenue required will be dc rived is from a higher general rate, from which £28,025 will be derived as against £24,527 last year. In other words, the general rate has increased bv £3300, and this excludes the in crease in the hospital levy, which has increased by £OO3. Shifting the Incidence “The recent revaluation of the borough makes it difficult to compare the increase of the rate in the £ this year with the rate in the £ last year. “The revaluation itself merely shifts the incidence of rate charges and does not affect the rate income provided that income remained a constant or reducing factor,, which unfortunately does not appear to be the experience of this borough.” - Confusion had arisen, he continued, in computing the rate in the £ increase attributable to the revaluation and to increase in expenditure. Part of the increase of 1 27-64 d in the £ in the Gisborne, Haiti and Whataupoko areas was due to reductions in the total 'borough unimprove.l value and part to the increase in expenditure this year amounting to £3P24 over the whole borough. This vear everv £7O of expenditure represented 1/64.1 in the £ on tho unimproved value of the whole borough^. “We therefore divide £3324 by £7(n which equals almost 52/64(1 in the £,” be continued. “The position, there fore,* appears to be this: —Total increase of rate in the £ this year, 1 27-64 d; amount attributable to increased expenditure, 52-64 d; difference bv reason of revaluation. 39-64.1 in the “Dealing with the increase in rates attributable to extra expenditure amounting to approximately 52/64th.‘ of Id in the £ on the unimproved value of the borough, no doubt a considerable portion of this is due to rising costs, but it is not possible to ascertain from the estimates how much of the increase is duo to these lactors. Permanent Works “Another salient feature which a careful perusal of the estimates discloses is that very little permanent work on roads and streets has been provided for this year, and many reasonable and legitimate requests for improvements to roads and streets have been refused, as the undertaking of them would necessitate the infliction of a higher rate in the £. “In the immediate future the bor ough is undoubtedly faced with a large capital expenditure for services absolutely necessary to the health of the community, for example, a water sup ply, and other important matters. It also must be evident to us that many important streets nre urgently in need of attention. The council for some years hns pursued a wise policy of per inanently improving its roads and streets out of revenue, 'but it would appear to me that the funds available from this source are insufficient to meet the urgent needs of the community, and that sooner or later a wise policy of borrowing for roads and streets construction will have tn be embarked upon. -“Faced then,-a* w-o appear to be. with the necessity of considering such a policy, and also faced with the certainty of further borrowings in tho immediate future to provide, for example, a water supply, and other matters intimately connected with the public health, it may be possible thai a thorough exploration of every avenue of the borough’s overhead charges would disclose that economies in these overhead charges could be reasonably effected without impairing the efficiency of the administration, ami if these economies could be made then the amount caved would be available for expenditure on necessary works, or in minimising the weight of annual loan charges entailed by further necessary borrowings. The Council’s Duty

“When I first curne on to the coun-i-il t .vo veins ago,” Cr. liull concluded, “J reviewed the borough's position, rind then suggested thnt u thorough overhaul of our system should be made by a competent independent expert in borough affairs. This suggestion received little support, but I again contend that it is our duty to have this investigation, which, to my knowledge, can be done by an independent expert of high reputation for a reasonable fee.”

Supporting the proposal to, refer consideration of the matter to tlio council in committee, Cr. G. Bradley Smith said it seemed that next year, with the proposed expenditure of the hospital and fire boards and proposed •water expenditure, no harm would do done in going into the matter, and H an expert could show where savings could be effected there was no reason why the matter should not lie looked into. The position was that in the business area of the town rates were going up, although rents were going down. _ , The Mayor, Mr. D. W. Coleman, M.P.: The rents are going down. Or. Smith: In some places, perhaps. It was agreed that within three months the council should meet in committee to consider the matter.