Public works share of revenues dwindling

Title

Language

English

Source

The American Chamber of Commerce Journal Volume 6 (Issue No.10) October 1926

Year

1926

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Fulltext

October, 1926 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 17 Public Works Share of Revenues Dwindling Last Year Only 73.77 Per Cent of Sum Given Schools The whole expenditures of the insular government last year were, according to a- special table courteously furnished to the Journal by the Insular Auditor, P82.770,167.17. In the same year the insular ex penditure on public schools was Pl5,275,846.65, according to the report of the Direc tor of Education, while the auditor’s table ihows the expenditure for public works in cluding the operation of the bureau was •11^267,951, which is about 73.77 per cent >f the sum given the schools, the latter ieing about a fourth of the actual tax re•enue. The public is not always made aware, n the official statements of bureaus, or hose of the office of the governor general r the legislature, of the proportionate .llotment of revenues to the various arid ities of the insular government. Although arger sums than formerly are now appro•riated for public works or obtained by he sale of bonds, there is a proportionate .ecrease in money used for this purpose s compared with money used by the govirnmemt for all other purposes. Public rorks are getting a smaller share, in other 7<JTds, of the insular peso. ^ear Public Works All Outlay '/<■ for Pesos Pesos P. Wks. 901 2,198,566 12,200,907 16.8 902 3,736,339 15,314,005 24.5 903 3,582,338 21,218,372 21.5 904 7,262,822 25,119,846 29.0 )05 8,006,090 27,349,469 29.0 .906 4,985,114 23,817,111 21.0 1)07 2,494,067 21,184,118 11.8 1908 3,982,146 25,718,932 15.5 909 6,400,806 36,275,739 17.6 1910 6,613,306 31,799,101 20.7 1911 7,606,799 36,286,130 21.0 ;912 8,517,588 38,767,427 21.8 1913 7,737,183 39,284,653 19.1 1913 July to December— 3,222,784 20,838,519 15.5 .914 4,969,886 24,685,777 20.1 1915 6,591,802 36,723,534 18.0 1916 4,536,173 38,589,928 11.9 .917 7,452,210 43,197,230 17.2 .918 8,987,159 54,337,914 16.5 .‘.919 13,316,671 81,333,970 16.4 ' 1920 12,565,030 75,023,377 16.8 1921 15,076,052 117,761,590 12.8 1922 9,805,975 78,602,624 12.5 1923 10,041,286 95,589,800 10.5 1924 10,389,694 90,890,878 11.4 1925 11,267,951 82,770,967 13.6 During the last five years, when the per centage of money expended upon public works has been lower than in any similar period since the civil government was or ganized, the tax upon gasoline for road building funds has been quadrupled and is 7% cents gold per gallon. The merchants sales tax has been increased 50 per cent, though not to finance public works, but to finance public schools. Over a longer period the unit cost of public works has been in creasing; so that, with a reduced portion of the revenues, far less, in addition, is to be had peso for peso than when appropria tions were relatively higher and materials ' and wages much lower; but off-setting this •to some extent, during the last five years the practice has been established of finan cing public works with public bonds, which spreads the higher cost over a period of 30 years instead of confining it to one. The year 1913 ushered in the new era, as it was called. The American majority was removed from the Philippine Commis sion immediately, and in 1916 the commis sion was succeeded by the senate and a complete popular legislature established that has only an unimportant appointive element in it. This year then, 1913, may be reckoned from fore and aft. From 1901 to 1913 inclusive the whole expenditures of the insular government were P375,174,334 and the expenditures for public works alone were P76,235,987, or 20.32 per cent of the whole expenditures. From 1913 to 1925 inclusive the whole ex penditures of the government were P819,507,593 and the expenditures for public works alone were P114,747,183, or 14 per cent of the whole expenditures. The table also lends itself to other interesting com parisons. The commission and commis sion-assembly governments managed one yeai’ with another to put one peso out of every five into public works. The propor tion fell last year to one peso in eight, ap proximately, and in 1923 was barely above one peso in ten. Far more is now spent within Manila than the commission and commission-assembly governments ever thought of alloting, though now the re venues are controlled by the provincial legislative majority; but it will be found upon investigation that many and perhaps most of these young legislators spend practically all their time in the capital, where they have homes and practice law, and that only occasionally, for brief in tervals, do they burden themselves with visits to their districts. Some indeed maintain schools in Manila, or are faculty members in such schools; and one activity or another, if not several, readily explains their indifference to provincial demands for public improvements. IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL

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17

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