The New Charter Produces One of the earliest results of Philadelphia's new charter is now familiar to all of us who have been reading the daily newspapers of the last few weeks. The mayor is preparing the city's budget for next year! He is doing something that heretofore has not been required of Philadelphia's mayor. For the first time, he is definitely assuming the initiative and leadership in financial affairs that rightly belongs to the city's chief executive. A Comparison Were it not for certain provisions of the new charter Philadelphia would not have a mayoral budget for next year-in fact, would have no budget at all. But, thanks to the charter, instead of a mere compilation of departmental requests prepared by the chairman of the finance committee and another mere compilation of departmental requests prepared by the city controller, both mutually irreconcilable and the latter practically useless from the standpoint of the needs of the city's legislative body, councils will receive a real budget, although it may not be perfect. Councils will have before them for consideration, and as a guide for making the annual appropriations and fixing next year's tax rate, what amounts to a single, coordinated request for all of the departments and other units of the city government. Instead of having to consider twenty-seven or more unrelated and, for the most part, highly inflated requests it will have the benefit of the mayor's previous consideration and determination of the propriety of the numerous departmental requests. Opportunities that Knock Despite the fact that the charter revisionists were unsuccessful in getting all of their budgetary and financial reforms through the legislature, and despite the fact that the city's hands are somewhat awkwardly tied in budgetary matters, there is great opportunity for both the mayor and councils to make changes and improvements of one kind or an other that will go far toward enlightening the citizens as to the city's finances, toward speeding up the city's business, toward getting 100 cents of value for every dollar spent, and toward making the city government the servicerendering enterprise it is supposed to be. STATEMENT OF THE OWNERSHIP, MANAGEMENT, CIRCULATION, ETC., REQUIRED BY THE ACT OF CONGRESS OF AUGUST 24, 1912. Of CITIZENS' BUSINESS, published weekly at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for October 1, 1919. Before me, a Notary Public in and for the State and county aforesaid, personally appeared Frederick P. Gruenberg, who, having been duly affirmed according to law, deposes and says that he is the editor of CITIZENS BUSINESS and that the following is, to the best of his knowledge and belief, a true statement of the ownership, management, etc., of the aforesaid publication for the date shown in the above caption, required by the Act of August 24, 1912, embodied in section 443, Postal Laws and Regulations, to wit: 1. That the names and addresses of the publisher, editor, managing editor, and business managers are: Publisher, Bureau of Municipal Research, Philadelphia. Managing Editor, None. Business Managers, None. 2. That the owners are: Bureau of Municipal Research No capital stock. 3. That the known bondholders, mortgagees, and other security holders owning or holding 1 per cent or more of total amount of bonds, mortgages, or other securities are: None. (Signed) Frederick P. Gruenberg. Affirmed to and subscribed before me this 19th day of September, 1919. [SEAL] (Signed) Martha H. Quinn. (My Commission expires January 16, 1923.) |