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Real estate record and builders' guide: [v. 96, no. 2479: Articles]: September 18, 1915

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REAL ESTATE AND NEW YORK, SEPTEMBER 18, 1915 I AT WORK ON THE CITY BUDGET PROBLEM | ■ I I Paring Down the Department Estimates—A Tax Rate of $2.05 I I the Estimate of the Advisory Council—The Mayor Says $2.09 I .llllilliliiliiilMliBiM^^^^^^ WITH the prospect of a tax rate for 1916 of about 2.05 the hearings be¬ fore the Budget Committee of the Board of Estimate should command the most careful study and attention on the part of taxpayers and real estate associations. The preparation of the 1916 budget is now in progress and estimates have been submitted by practically all but two or three of the larger city departments. Some of the departmental estimates indicate that the requests for appropria¬ tions will be smaller than in 191S; but many of the larger departments, like the Police, Park, Health and Board of Edu¬ cation, have requested increases. In view of the fact that it is almost impos¬ sible to analyze the budget in detail be¬ cause of the vast array of figures and mass of statistics, taxpayers are direct¬ ing their efforts more towards a consid¬ eration of the general principles of econ¬ omy than endeavoring to recommend econornies which may, for the most part, be impossible to effect because of man¬ datory legislation. Of the 199 million dollars in the 1915 budget, approxiiTiately 66 millions rep¬ resent obligatory appropriations for debt service and deficiencies in the collection of taxes. Of the remaining 133 inillion dollars, 26 per cent, was i-nandatory leg¬ islation, 13 per cent, was partly manda¬ tory, leaving 63 per cent, in part discre¬ tionary with the city budget makers. During the past five years the depart¬ ments under the Mayor have increased their expenses on an average of about 11 per cent., while those departments over which the Mayor has but partial control have increased ZZ per cent. When it is further understood that the Board of Education, the county govern¬ ments and many of the city salary ex¬ penses are mandatory, to a certain de¬ gree, although included within the 63 per cent, of the budget now being ex¬ amined by the committee, it is evident that the degree of saving which can be accomplished by the city administration is limited to a great extent. Standardization of Salaries. One very vital principle now being en¬ forced and which will shortly come be¬ fore the Board of Estimate for approval is the standardization of salaries and grades, among city employees. There a.e approximately 103,000 employees paid by the city; 21,000 come under the head of the Board of Education; 11,000 under the Police Department; 8,000 un¬ der the Fire Department, and 35,000 la¬ borers. The tentative specifications with regard to the classifications of salaries relate at this time to those in profes¬ sional and clerical service, of which there are approximately 26,000. It may be quite possible that classifi¬ cation of salaries and grades may be ac¬ complished in the Police, Fire and Labor Departments in the estimates of these departments for 1916; but owing to the fact that the Board of Education is a separate corporation under the jurisdic¬ tion of the State, the classification of employees can only be put into efifect there after the Home Rule Amendment to the Constitution is approved next No- qpHE Board of Estimate, acting -*- through a sub-committee, is engaged in making up tentatively a budget to show the sums of money necessary to raise by taxa¬ tion to meet the expenses of gov¬ ernment next year. The Mayor estimates, taking into account both the State and city levy, that the tax rate will be $2.09, as compared with $1.87 for Manhattan in 1915. With a desire to ease the burden upon real estate as much as pos¬ sible the Mayor has directed the Tax Department to rigidly enforce the tax against personal property and for the Budget Committee to cut out all unnecessary positions in the civil service. vember. It has been estimated that if the classification of salaries and grades alone were to be put into operation in all departments, a saving to the city would be close to ?13,000,000. If the Board of Estimate should approve of the tentative specifications now being ap¬ plied by the Budget Sub-committee to tlie profesr.ional and clerical services of the city, it has been estin-iated the saving in salaries would be about $2,000,000 and the saving from positions abolished would be approximately $2,000,000. Represented at the Hearings, Real estate interests have been repre¬ sented at these hearings by meinbers of the Advisory Board of Real Estate Interests which accepted the invitation of the Board of Estimate to sit with its Sub-committee in the preparation of the budget. Taxpayers are in no way com¬ mitted to the acceptance of the budget, as recommended by the Sub-comtnittee and, with the Advisory Council, will have the privilege of appearing before the Board of Estimate to protest, object to and criticise any items that have been included in the budget. Thi entire re¬ sponsibility for the making of the bud¬ get is imposed on the Board of Esti¬ mate, so that it is essentially important that taxpayers be prepared to attend the public hearings to be given at City Hall. In advance of these hearings, copies of the reports of the Bureau of Stand¬ ards to the Committee on Salaries and Grades of the Board of Estimate and .\pportionment should be obtained. There have been three reports prepared. The first is on the Cost of Living for an Unskilled Laborer's Family in New York City, in which this bureau maintains that the minimum wage for an unskilled la¬ borer's family of fivi should be between $720 and $840, to be consistent with .■\merican ideas. This would apply prin¬ cipally to salaries in the Street Clean¬ ing Department. Many reductions of salaries have been recommended in the reports on Professional Service and Clerical Service, while many positions will remain unfilled or be abolished if the reports should be adopted. The classifications cover practicalb' all em¬ ployees, except departmental heads. Five Factors. The basis for the rates of compensa¬ tion which the Bureau of Standards rec¬ ommends for the various positions are based upon five factors, which are as follows: First, the market value of the particular kind of work performed; sec¬ ond, the conditions peculiar to certain employments in the city service; third, the experience of the municipal civil service commission, in examining and certifying for positions in the city serv¬ ice, at the existing rates of compensation; fourth, the assumption that New York City wishes, as far as it is financially able, to be a model employer; five, the theory that a range of salaries rather than a fixed rate should be established for the majority of positions in the city service. These specifications are being careful¬ ly analyzed by the executive committee of the Advisory Council, in conference with the Director of the Bureau of Standards, and a report of their conclu¬ sions will be submitted to real estate owners within the near future. In view of the fact that no ta.xpayers' associa¬ tion can intelligently or wisely analyze tie budget, because of its complexity, the Advisory Council believes that it will be e-xpedient for the Bureau of Stand¬ ards, the Bureau of Contract Supervision and the ofifice of the Commissioner of Accounts be combined into a central Bureau of Organization and Control. Possibly under such a plan, the ofifice of Chainberlain could be merged with that of the Comptroller and the present City Chamberlain, whose reports and in¬ vestigations have been very valuable in the interests of economy, ceuld be des¬ ignated to act as the head of such a cen¬ tral Bureau. The duties of such a cen¬ tral Bureau would be to reorganize the city administration along the lines of eflliciency, abolish unnecessary commit¬ tees and departments and continue an active investigation, for the benefit of taxpayers, of the entire city budget, as is now being done by the Commissioner of .\ccounts, the Bureau of Contract Su¬ pervision and the Bureau of Standards, as separate organizations. State Equalization. Notwithstanding the fact that property owners are agreed that the assessments placed by the Department of Taxes and Assessments upon real estate through¬ out the city are abnormally high, com¬ pared with market values, the State Board of Equalization at Albany has fixed the ratio of assessment upon real property in the City of New York as fol¬ lows: New York County, 9Z per cent; the Bronx and Kings Counties, 92 per cent.: Queens and Richmond Counties, 89 per cent., with an average of 92.41 per cent, for the five counties. The City of New York will be required to pay 68 per cent, of the direct State tax upon this basis, as compared to 12 per cent, in 1913. Out of a Direct State Tax of $19,693,690 the city will pay $13,358,412. In addition to placing the assessed val-