NEW PLYMOUTH BOROUGH

Taranaki Daily News, 4 February 1930, Page 15

NEW PLYMOUTH BOROUGH

ESTIMATES FOR COMING YEAR HALFPENNY INCREASE IN RATES. MAYOR REVIEWS THE POSITION.. An increase in the total rate from • B’d in the £ to 9d i» the £ during ~ the coming year was forecast in , the draft estimates submitted to a meeting of the New Plymouth Bor-i ough Council last night. A decrease in the general rate is provided for, but the tramways department ac-] counts for a considerable increase. * The estimates provide for decreases of £3300 in the general rate, of £O7l in hospital rate, of £5O in payments on a general loan of £142,000, and of £363 in payments on a special loan of £l-1,-225 which does not figure at all in the coining year’s estimates, ' ‘ Increases, however, occur in the following cases: £2908 on the drainage loan of £172,000; £1762 on a tramways loan of £55,000; £1314 on another tramways loan of £19,000; £671 bn a special £42,000 loan; £447 on a special tramway loan of £22,509; £224 on a special loan of £57,000; £9O in sanitation fees; and £35 in special water ’ rates, etc. With the total increased charges to be met ( £7452), and the total decreases ( £4590), this leaves £2862 additional money to be found, bringing the total estimates for the coming year to £70,412, as compared with £67,550 in the current year. It is proposed .to meet this increased amount by levying an additional rate of id in the £l.' DEBIT OF £4327 ON TRAMWAYS. “The principal reasons for the increase are to be found in the various estimates submitted by the tram way manager for his department,” said the Mayor (Mr. H. V. 8. Griffiths) in reviewing the position. “In his statement marked ‘Final Summary B,’ if will be seen that, notwithstanding that £4334 was collected by a tramway rate for the current year, it is estimated that the year will end with a debit balance of £4327 17s Id. The debit balance at April 1, 1929, was £1093, so that, if the estimate be correct, and there is every reason to believe it substantially correct, the expenditure on the two services for the year will exceed the receipts by £7568 17s Id. This is arrived at as follows: Debit balance as shown above. £4327 17s Id; special rates collected (not revenue), £4334; total, £8661 17s Id; less debit balance April 1, 1929, £1093; grand total, £7568 17s Id. “This has created a very embarrassing position, which is reflected in the estimates for the year ending March 31. 1931,” continued the Mayor. “Eliminating all details, the estimates for the ensiung year, in tabloid form, are as follows: Debit balance at April 1, 1930, £4327 17s Id; excess of expenditure over receipts tramways, £2532 I7s 2d; excess of expenditure over receipts bus services, £BB7 6s; total debit balance, £7748 0s 3d. It is proposed to meet this by a special rate on the tramways loans, producing £7758, leaving an estimated credit balance at March 31, 1931, of £9 19s fid. ‘‘THE ONLY CONSOLATION.” “The only consolation io be obtained from the above figures, and it is not very much, is that the proposed increase in the tramways rates is to cover the deficiencies for three years, more than one-half being included in the debit balance brought forward. It must also be 'clearly understood that this report is not one on the commercial balancesheet of the tramways undertaking, but is one intended to show what moneys are required to carry the undertaking through the ensuing year. The commercial balance-sheets will be issued at the end of the financial year, but it is quite clear that these will not be of an encouraging nature. “It has from time to time been suggested that the unsatisfactory position of the tramways account is due to the heavy lessee sustained by the bus eervices run in conjunction with the tramways. A perusal of the estimates will, however, show that whilst the losses on the bus services are substantial, they are not the principal cause of the financial difficulties of the tramways. They are a contributing factor, but not the principal cause. It might also be thought that the fact that the council is now compelled to set aside a depreciation fund in actual cash instead of a mere book entry as in the past, is a substantial factor, and, to a certain extent, this is true. In the estimates allowance has been made for depreciation. It is thought that the allocations will be sufficient to satisfy the authorities, but this will not be known until the matter has been placed before them. To arrive at the amount to be set aside it is permissible to deduct any amounts paid to sinking funds on loans. This has been done, and the amounts set aside are as follows for each year:— Tramways, £1460; buses, £524; total, £1934 per annum. The amounts set aside for renewal fund in the previous year amounted to approximately £570, but those have been discontinued. The actual increase owing to the setting aside of depreciation is, therefore, £1414 per annum. . GENERAL POSITION ANALYSED. “The increase of the amount .collected on the tramway rates from £4330 during the current year to £7759 for the ensuing . year represents approximately in the £. It will also be necessary to collect approximately id in th 4 * £ to provide for the interest and sinking fund on the new drainage loan of £172,000 now being raised. An addition of Id in the £ on rates, however, in my opinion is too heavy a burden to ask the ratepayers to bear, and for that reason I have been compelled to recommend a reduction of Id in the £ on the general rate. If this be done the net increase in rates will be id in the £. ' “I am afraid that councillors,: and the ratepayers generally, will be disappointed to find that the vote for street purposes has again to be substantially reduced. For the current year it was reduced from the previous year by approximately £5OOO. This year, owing principally to the reduction of the general rate, a further reduction of £3790 is necessary. Of this, th© reduction in the general rate accounts for £3300, and an increase in the vote for the Waiwakaiho bridge accounts for £450. The other items in. the general account estimates do not vary much from thefigures for the current year. , .

“The reduction in the vote for street purposes will not affect the general maintenance of the streets. This is fully provided for. The estimates, however, included £8790 for new works, and this will now, should the council agree, have to be reduced to £5OOO. The question of what streets shall be eliminated from the list of new works will be one for the works committee to report upon and is not one that will delay the completion of the estimates.”