Rhondda Leader Maesteg Garw and Ogmore Telegraph

Important Reforms Recommended. Collection of Rates to be Unified. The report of the Special Committee appointed to consider the report of the District Auditor upon the audit of accounts for the year ended 31st March, 1907, was presented to a special meeting of the Rholldda District Council on Friday last, Councillor Thos. Thomas presiding. The investigations of the Committee included a visit to Liverpool, Wallasey, and Black- pool, where the sytem adopted in those places was fully explained to them, and the Clerk had also prepared a statement of the clerical and other work performed in the various departments of the Council, with particulars of the methods adopted by the heads of thei departments for obtaining requisites from time to time r-equired by them. The report is as follows: REPORT of the Special Committee appointed to consider the Report of the District Auditor upon the Audit of Accounts for the year ended the 31st March, 1907. The Committee were appointed in pursuance of a resolution of the Council passed at its meeting on the 2nd day of October, 1908, to consider the Report of the District Auditor with power, if deemed necessary, to call in the services of an expert and to visit any other district with a, view of preparing and submitting to the Council recommendations for the carrying on of the financial work of the respective departments in the future. In all six meetings of the Committee have been held, namely, on the 9th October, 1908, the 7th December, 1908, the 14th February, 1909, the 17th March, 1909, the, 2n.. April, 1909, and the 27th 'April, 1909. In the course of their investigations, the Committee found it necessary to appoint a Sub-Committee to make certain detailed enquiries. This Sub-Committee met on the 26th February, 19C9, and the 5th March, 1909. The Committee had before them the heads of the several departments of the Council and examined the account books kept in each department, and in accord- ance with the Committee's instructions, the, Clerk prepared a statement of the clerical and accountancy work performed in the various departments of the Council with particulars of the methods adopted bv the heads of the departments of the Council for obtaining the requisites from time to time required by them. A print of the statement submitted to the Council bearing datei the 31st October, 1908, is sent herewith. In pursuance of a resolution of the Committee, Messrs. David Smith and W. H. Morgan, accompanied by the Clerk,' visited Liverpool, Blackpool, and Wallasey for the purpose, of making enquiries into the financial systems adopted by these municipalities, and a print of the report presented by Messrs. Smith and Morgan accompanies this report. "GENERAL. "Before, dealing in detail with the various points arising out of the sug- gestions contained in the Auditor's Report, the Committee desire to state that they made an exhaustive inquiry as to whether any overlapping of duties or duplication of work existed in any of the depart- ments of the Council other than those in which the collection of rates and revenues were carried on, and they are pleased to be able to report that with the exception of some slight duplication relating to the keeping of the Loan Accounts in the Gas and Water1 and Accountant's Departments no avoidable overlapping or duplication of work was found to exist. Owing to the fact that the Poor Rate was collected by a Collector appointed by and under the control of the Poor Law Guardians, a considerable amount of duplication work took place in the collection of that rate and the General District Rate, as two dis- tinct staffs covered the same ground. Duplication of work also occurs by reason of the Gas and Water revenues being col- lected by an independent collecting staff. Immediately after the decease of the late Poor Rate Collector, the Council took the necessary steps for having the power vested in the Guardians of appointing an independent Collector of the Poor Rate revoked, and for placing- such Collector under the control of the Council, and the action of the Council having been success- ful, the last obstacles in the way of the unification of collection has now been removed. SUMMAPVY OF MAIN RECOMMEN- DATIONS IN AUDITOR'S REPORT. The Committee have very carefully considered the Auditor's Report and have come to the conclusion that, apart from observations on matters of detail which are dealt with hereafter,* the main recom- mendations contained in the Report divide themselves into four heads, namely: — (a.) Centralising the keeping and enter- ing up of the accounts relating to the financial transactions of the Council. (b) The unification of the collection of all rates and revenues. (c) The_adoption of an improved system under which articles required and work to be done are ordered by the Officers of the Council; and (d) The exercise of greater control over the receipt and issue of stocks and storm. "CENTRALISATION OF ACCOUNTS. The Committee unanimously recom- mend that the keeping and entering of the books of accounts in which any of the financial transactions of the Council are recorded, whether relating to dealings by the Council as a trading concern, or as the Urban, Sanitary, Education, or Burial Authority for the district, should be per- formed in the Accountant's Department, and that the Rate books should be pre- pared and the demands for the rates and revenues made out in that department. "UNIFICATION OF COLLECTION OF RATES. The Committee further recommend that the collection of the Poor Rate, General District, and Gas and Water Rates, and all other revenues of the Council should be unified, and that col- lectors in the permanent employ of and paid a, fixed salary by the Council should be appointed to make the necessary col- lections, and that in addition to the work of collection these officers should procure all information necessary to enable the Assistant Overseers to compile the Valua- tion Lists and prepare the Voters and Jury Lists. All persons employed in the collection of rates should hold a formal appointment as Assistant Overseer, so that they may be directly accountable to the District Auditor for all monies re- ceived and deposited by them, in respect of which they should keep a separate per- sonal account. The present General District Rate Collector should be appointed to superin- tend the due performance by the collectors of their several duties, and it should be his duty to receive from the collectors the amounts of their respective collections and to bank the same, and to generally ensure the due and diligent collection of the Council's revenues.. The Superinten- dent Collector should report daily to the Accountant the total amount of the col- lections and the sums from day to day banked by him, and he should supply the Accountant with all information which the Accountant may require in relation to the collection of the revenues. The present Assistant Overseer should for the future by styled the Superinten- dent Assistant Overseer, and it should be his duty to continue to prepare the Valua- tion Lists and advise the Overseers as to the circumstances connected with the assessment of properties, and he should also perform the necessary work connected with the preparation of the Voters and Jury Lists, receiving all information re- quired for the purpose from the collectors already referred to. Whenever either the present General District Rate Collector or the Assistant Overseer ceases to perform the duties allocated to them respectively in the fore- going recommendations, those duties should thereafter be performed by or under the direction of the Accountant, with the exception that in the case of the Superintendent Collector ceasing to dis- charge the duties, a Cash Clerk should be appointed to receive the cash from the Collectors and to bank the same, reporting to the Accountant the amount of the col- lections and the sums from day to day banked. The foregoing recommendations will involve the reconsideration of the terms of the respective appointments of the General District Rate Collector and the Assistant Overseer. REQUISITION FOR REQUISITES. The Committee recommend that a Requisition Book should be provided for each Committee, in which the heads of departments should enter all articles re- quired and work to be done, and such 'book should be produced at every meeting of the Committee to which the same relates, and if the requisitions therein made are approved, signed by the Chair- man. "With regard to the ordering of articles required or work to be done, every head of a department should be provided with a printed form of order with printed consecutive numbers and counterfoils, on which all orders for work or articles should be given. No accounts should be passed which do not record the consecutive number of such orders. Proper books should also be kept not only for enabling the heads of departments to properly certify the accounts in respect of such works and articles, but to enable the Accountant to efficiently check and certify such accounts before lie passes same for payment. STOCKS AND STORES. The Committee very fully considered this matter, and had before them infor mation with Iregard to the situation of the several stores in the Surveyor's and Gas and Water Departments of the Council, and the extent of the stores kept therein. They found that in the Surveyor's Department there- are six existing stores situate respectively at Tre- herbert, Ton, Ystrad, Trealaw, Porth, and Ferndale. The total value of the stocks kept therein amounted on the 31st March, 1908, to £ 883 10s. 7d., the principal stores being situate at Trealaw- and Porth, which respectively had stocked therein on the same date goods of the value of zC437 and £20.7. The total value of the stores con- sumed for the year 1908, in the Surveyor's Department, amounted to the sum of £ 3,315, but this does not include granite and limestone which amounted to £ 5,817. The value of the stores purchased annually in the Gas and Water Department is the sum of £ 7,000; these, stores are chiefly kept at the Pentre Offices, Ystrad Gas Works, Llwynypia Offices, and the Porth Gas Works, the total value of -the stores in hand at the date of the Sub-Committee's enquiries being £ 3,300. The Committee are unanimously of the opinion that each department of the Council should keep such system of stocks and stores accounts as may be necessary to maintain an efficient control over the receipt and issuel of goods and materials, and to enable a record to be kept in the Accountant's Department of the true posi- tion of the stocks -in the stores under their several distinctive heads. The Accountant and his staff should have the right of attending at the stores at any time for the purpose of ascertaining whether the stores actually in hand accord with the balance shown to exist by the records kept by him. CENTRAL STORES. The Committee desire to draw atten- tion to the fact that no place exists for the keeping of stores in the, Education Department. They are of opinion that the question of keeping: the articles and things required for and used in the several departments of the Council in one central store is a matter that deserves further consideration and investigation, and they recommend that the Council should consider the same. In the foregoing, recommendations the Committee have only dealt with broad questions of principle, and have not made recommendations upon points of detail. They, however, think it right to say that the carrying out of these recommendations will involve no difficulty in matters of detail. Apart from the broad questions of principle raised in the Auditor's Report and the observations made in relation to the Gas and Water undertaking, which latter have already been fully dealt with by the Gas and Water Committee, there are certain remarks made by the Auditor on matters of detail in administration which have been investigated by the Com- mittee, and the Committee's views in reference thereto are next hereafter set out. EDUCATION DEPARTMENT RE- PAIRS TO SCHOOL BUILDINGS. The Committee are of opinion that the system at present in vogue affords a satisfactory check upon this branch of the work. Briefly, the system is as follows — The district is divided into two parts for the sake of convenience and economy 00 regards travelling expenses. Each district has three workmen, consisting of a car- penter (who acts as foreman), a mason and a labourer. The working foreman is directly responsible to the Council; he receives his instructions in matters of minor repairrs from the Director, and in matters of important repairs requiring skill or technical knowledge beyond that which the foreman may reasonably be ex- pected to possess, he receives his instruc- tions direct from the Architect. Requisi- tions for all materials, &c., required are submitted by each foreman to the Direct tor, and no materials are allowed to be purchased except under the written authority of the Director. The time- sheets of the workmen are submitted weekly to the Director, the foremen being required to certify the time of the masons and labourers under their supervision. As an additional check, the time-sheets are submitted to the head-teachers, who initial the same, thus certifying the pre- sence of the workmen at their respective schools on the dates indicated on the sheets. ABSTRACT BOOKS. "These books were discontinued owing to the withdrawal by the Board of Educa- tion of the requirement for annual state- ments of income and expenditure in respect of each school being rendered separately, and their discontinuance did not arise from inadequacy of staff as stated in the report. The Committee, however, recommend that these books should be again kept for the purpose of enabling the relative cost of the mainten- ance of each school being readily ascer- tained. In fact, the keeping of the books has already been resumed, and the Direc- tor's last annual report contains a full statement of income and expenditure in respect of each separate school. STOCKS AND STORES. "These records always have been a.nd still are being kept. It appears, however, that the stores are not checked. The proper checking of all stores has already been dealt with under a. previous recom- mendation of this Committee, and the checking of this class of stores falls within such recommendation., The Committee respectfully submit that the duties of the Director are clearly defined in the Special Report submitted to the Council on the 7th day of April, 1905. BILLS OF QUANTITIES. It has been the practice of the Council to accept lump sum tenders for school erections, enlargements and alterations, the priced bills of quantities being only required, as far as the Authority is con- cerned, for the purpose of dealing with extras or deductions as the case might be. It is recommended that this system be adhered to. The points raised by the District Auditor as to (1) the pricing of bills of quantities in pencil by certain contractors, and (2) the checking of the price quantities, have already been dealt with by the Building Committee in their report of the 19th March last, wherein it was recommended as under — That henceforth contracts for the erection, enlargement, and alteration of schools be made conditional upon the bills of quantities duly priced in ink accompanying each tender, and subject to verification of the priced quantities by the Architect in the case of each accepted tender.' This recommendation has been duly adopted by the Council. SURVEYOR'S DEPARTMENT—CON- TRACTS. The present system of payment for daywork haulage, which is now included in the scavenging specifications, has upon several occasions received the careful con- sideration of the Council. The last occa- sion upon which the matter was considered was on the 24th July, 1908, when the Roads Committee reported as under:- The Committee considered the system of payment for daywork haul- age to be included in the specification for scavenging tenders about to be advertised for. After due considera- tion, and haying regard to the past experience of the Committee;, it was recommended that the Council adhere to their present practice of paying for this work at the, fixed rate of ids per ( day of 9 hours.' 1 This .recommendation was unanimously adopted by the Council. The 10s. per day covers the payment in respect of the haulier, horse, and cart, and your Com- mittee are of opinion that the rate paid is fair and reasonable. Ample competi- tion is seculrecl by reason of the fact that the daywork haulage is included in the scavenging contracts, and that for the purpose of inviting tenders for these con- tracts the district is sub-divided into 28 sections. The Committee, however, sug- gest that the question of the desirability or otherwise of the Council undertaking the work of scavenging and haulage by the employment of direct labour is worthy of consideration by the Council. CHECKING OF DAYWORK. The present system of checking day- work haulage is as under —As a. rule the order for the work is given by the Works Inspector direct, but in some instances the roadman or other workman is autho- rised to procure from the contractor a cart to do certain work as soon as he is ready to proceed with it. This course enables the roadman or workman to post- pone the calling; out of the haulier until the work required to be done by him is actually ready to be proceeded with, thus avoiding any unnecessary waste of time and consequent expense. The workmen supply the Inspector with details of the time when the work is commenced and finished by the hauliers, which enables the Inspector to keep a continuous check upon the hauliers' time work in the dif- ferent parts of the district under his charge. The Inspector issues a covering order in respect of all work directly ordered by his subordinates. The Committee are of opinion that the system now obtaining for the checking of the daywork is, having regard to the nature and extent of the district, the best which can be adopted, and is for all prac- tical purposes satisfactory, and they recommend that it be continued. (Continued on page 3).