COLLECTION OF RATES

Taranaki Daily News, 14 November 1934, Page 14

COLLECTION OF RATES

EGMONT COUNTY PROBLEM DETERIORATION OF BY-ROADS. INCREASED RATE SUGGESTED. Strong exception to complaints from ratepayers being forwarded to the council regarding the state of the by-roads was taken by the engineer at the meeting of the Egmont County Council yesterday. He recognised that the road in question was worn out, he said, but it was not the only road that was “going back.” How could they expect anything else when there was only a palty £2OO or £3OO available to maintain about 40 miles of by-roads in each riding? There was not a hope of keeping the roads in repair. All that could be done was to patch the holes as they occurred. Moreover, the truck that was available was always needing repair. The only possible way the roads could be kept up to a reasonable standard was by making considerable use of unemployed relief labour.

Cr. Lilley said the position would be much better if the rates were paid. The engineer agreed that was so. Cr. Tosland said the ratepayers must realise, as did the council, that they could not go on for ever striking a low rate. It was evident that next year a rate would have to be levied sufficient to put the roads in necessary repair. He considered three or four men should be able to make a fair show in top-dressing the road in question. He held that topdressing with two inches of pit metal would put the road in reasonable condition until the council was in a position to strike a rate that would enable the surfacing of the road. Mr. Mclvor (the engineer) said that neither funds nor lorries were available for top-dressing as suggested. It was only possible to patch the holes as they occurred. One or two of the by-roads were in a really bad state, but the rest were not bad. CAUSES OF DAMAGE. Cr. Willcox said he had travelled over some of the roads mentioned recently and gained the impression that in places they were used for driving milking herds. He also thought there had been very heavy firewood traffic during wet weather. The chairman said the council must take steps to stop milking cows being regularly driven along the metalled roads as that did considerable damage. It was being carried on in other ridings also. The chairman said the settlers of the Newall Road would be satisfied at the attention the road was now ’ receiving. The works committee had no money to expend. The engineer pointed out that all the money available (£200) had been expended. Cr. Collins said that it had been pointed out two years ago, when the rates were reduced, that the present position would arise sooner or later.

Cr. A. J. Lilley said that the outstanding rates were a heavy drag. Cr. Gibson considered that aspect should be pointed out to the ratepayers concerned.

Cr. Farquhar said that something would have to be done to get the rates in. There was a large sum of £12,600 outstanding. The chairman said he had drawn attention to the necessity for the collection of rates at every meeting, but every time the question came up of issuing a summons, councillors felt that the ratepayers, who were “up against it,” should be given another opportunity. Some ratepayers paid their rates early while others took up the attitude that they could not pay. He considered the Egmont County was the worst county in Taranaki for the collection of rates. Cr. Lilley: Some of the ratepayers are not trying to pay.

The chairman said he had personally seen many ratepayers in an endeavour to get them to meet their obligations. Cr. Farquhar said the present position could not be allowed to go on. The byroads should be put in order and that could not be done if the people were allowed to default in their rates year after year. Moreover, in justice to those who did pay every endeavour should be made to collect from the others. CLERK’S DIFFICULTY. The clerk (Mr. G. W. Rogers) said he had a complete list of the defaulters. What good did it do to issue summonses when no results could be obtained? In most cases there were two or three mortgages on the land, the stock was under a bill of sale and the milk cheque was hypothecated. If the councillors could tell him what more he could do to get the money he would willingly do it, as at present he was up against a stone wall. The finance committee was aware of the position. The collection of rates took up more of his time and caused him more worry than all the rest of the work. There was an account before the meeting that day for £47 costs in connection with 18 judgments. He had exhausted all legal remedies. Cr, Farquhar said he was not aware that the position was so desperate. Replying to Cr. Tosland, the clerk said that in the majority of cases the first mortgagee on the properties was a Government department against which the council could not claim. It was exceptional in the district for the mortgagee to be a private individual, and in such cases, of course, claims were made on the mortgagee. Cr. Tosland considered the variety of land tenure in the district was largely responsible for the difficulty. In the Egmont County 70 per cent, of the land was held under the West Coast Settlements Act, 20 per cent, under fee simple and the remaining 10 per cent, under various forms of tenure.

Cr. Farquhar pointed out that once a •road was allowed to get into disrepair it cost a lot to bring it back again. Where would they be in a few years if they allowed the present position to continue? The clerk stated that rates totalling £4071 had been collected under the rebate. That was just under £3OO less than last year, which, under the circumstances, was very good. NOT DESIRED EFFECT. The chairman said that realising the position of the ratepayers the council had struck as low a rate as possible, hoping that it would assist the ratepayers to meet their obligations. It, however, had not had the desired effect. Cr. Holmes pointed out that ratepayers who were paying the rates were maintaining roads for those who were not. He 1 ' recognised that if the roads were to be kept in good order the rate would have to be increased, though that would probably only be entailing an additional burden on those who were now paying their rates, as the others would not be able to meet the higher rate any better than they were at present meeting the lower rate.

Cr. Lilley said that ratepayers with cars who did not pay their rates should be made to keep their cars inside their sheds. That, he considered, was 50 per cent, of the cause of the troubles. Cr. Tosland said Government departments should be made just as liable for rates as private mortgagees were. Cr. Collins said the difficulty of rate collection had been going on ever since hi joined the council —even in the days when good prices were being received for produce. He had favoured a lower

rate in view of the conditions, but he thought now that it would be necessary to increase the rates next year by a halfpenny if they wished to keep the roads in order. The discussion had arisen on the reading of a letter from Mr. C. B. Webster, secretary of the Newall Co-opbrative Dairy Company, notifying that the directors wished to bring before the council the very bad condition of the surface of the Warea, Newall and Carrington Roads. The roads were breaking up and in many cases the holes, which extended across the roads, were right through the metal. Considerable dissatisfaction was expressed by ratepayers at the method of maintaining the roads, and it was requested that an investigation be .at once carried out by the works committee, which representatives of the ratepayers in the locality would be glad to meet if that were desired. The chairman said he had met the chairman of the Newall Dairy Company and’explained that the council intended to top-dress the roads with gravel as far as the limited amount of money available would permit. He recognised that the roads needed attention but did not see that a visit from the works committee would do any good as the council could not expend more money than was available.

Cr. Willcox said the road was in a very rough condition. The worst section of it required scarifying and reconditioning.