tion desiring an appropriation. Any person having a claim against the State is likewise requested to file a statement of the amount of such claim, which shall be included in the budget.

An attempt is made to eliminate the practice of filing requests for appropriations directly with the Legislature by including the limitation that "no State officer, department or institution shall apply to the Legislature for any appropriation unless the request for the same has been filed with the secretary of the (Budget) Committee in accordance with the provisions of this act; unless the occasion for such request shall have arisen subsequent to the first day of November in the year next preceding the session of the Legislature at which the same is requested."1

Review of Estimates. As soon as all requests have been filed, the Budget Committee reviews the same and prepares a budget which shows the items estimated to be necessary for each department for the ensuing biennial period, together with an itemized statement of the revenues which it is expected will be received. The Committee may revise, increase, decrease or eliminate the sum requested by any department, but wherever there is any difference between the requests filed by a department and the recommendations of the Committee, the Committee is required to give its reasons for such differences. In order that the Legislature may have complete data upon which to base its action, provision is made that the tentative budget shall include a statement of the expenditures of each department for the current fiscal period and the two preceding periods, and also an itemized statement of the amounts of all unexpended balances of former appropriations.

The budget report, when completed, must be printed and sent to each member-elect of the incoming Legislature and to the clerk of each town before December 10; and when the Legislature convenes and has organized, it shall be presented to the newly organized committee on the budget.

Final Revision and Submission of Budget. Since the houses of the incoming Legislature may appoint new chairmen of the committees on finance, ways and means, and appropriations, and thus change the membership of the budget committee which drew up the tentative budget, the act provides that the newly formed Budget Committee shall have power to review the budget as originally pre

1 Laws of Vermont, 1915, No. 26, sect. 6.

pared. With this end in view, provision is made that the newly formed Budget Committee shall at the beginning of the legislative session receive the tentative budget from the outgoing committee and after examination shall make such revision as it deems advisable and draw up a consolidated statement of the estimated income and expenditures as finally agreed upon.

Although there is no requirement that a general appropriation bill should accompany the budget, it is provided that the Budget Committee shall, as soon as the time for the introduction of measures in the Legislature has expired, prepare a schedule of all amounts contemplated to be appropriated by the various bills introduced to that date, together with the recommendations of the Budget Committee as to the advisability of the same. As soon as the Legislature has disposed of the proposed appropriations, such of them as have been passed shall be included by the Budget Committee in a single budget bill, which shall contain all the expenditures of the State for the ensuing biennial period, and which shall be presented to the Legislature for its consideration, revision and final passage. Thus it is seen that all appropriations are brought together into a consolidated appropriation act instead of being scattered among a number of separate statutes, as is done in Massachusetts.

New York Budget Law, 1916.1

The recent New York budget system presents some points of difference from those of the other States described above. After experimenting with a board of estimate and apportionment, somewhat similar to that of Wisconsin, the New York Legislature in 1916 adopted a budget law which merely strengthens the ordinary legislative process of dealing with appropriations.

The authorities charged with the preparation of the budget in New York are the Finance Committee of the Senate and the Ways and Means Committee of the Assembly. These committees acting jointly or separately are required not later than March 15 to prepare the budget of annual expenditures and revenues and submit it to their respective houses. Provision is also made that the Governor shall likewise submit to each house of the Legislature a statement of the total amount of appropriations desired by each department, commis

1 Laws of New York, 1916, chapter 130.

sion, office, etc., and may make such recommendations as he sees fit as to additions or reductions. The chief budget-making authorities, however, are the Finance Committee and the Committee on Ways and Means. The part given to the Governor is no more than he already possessed, and the responsibility for the preparation and recommendation of the budget is assigned to the legislative committees. Staff Assistance. In order that the two committees may perform the functions of a budget committee, the law provides that they shall be continued during the recess of the Legislature; that their respective chairmen may appoint sub-committees to perform such duties as may be prescribed, and that each committee shall have a special staff, the duties of which are to compile information and data, make investigations and examinations, and aid the committees generally in the preparation of the annual budget and in the performance of their other duties.

Legislative Procedure on Appropriation Measures. After the estimates have been received and adjusted, the committee are required to supplement them with a single bill providing for the appropriations that are recommended. The law goes into considerable detail as to the procedure according to which appropriation bills shall be passed, and it is in this respect that the New York system is superior to those of most other States with the exception of Maryland.

In the first place the appropriation bill must remain before the Committee of the Whole of the Senate and on the order of second reading in the Assembly for its consideration at least five full legislative days, and on each of these days shall be the special order of the day. All meetings of either house for the consideration of the appropriation bill must be open to the public.

The New York budget law also differs from those of the other States in placing limitations on the Legislature. It is provided that while the bill is before the Committee of the Whole of the Senate or on the order of second reading in the Assembly, it may be amended either by inserting additional items or by increasing, reducing or eliminating items, but on third reading no amendments are in order except to reduce or eliminate an item without unanimous consent. The purpose of these provisions is to give the appropriation measures ample consideration and publicity and to prevent the practice of "tacking" on measures to the general appropriation bill.

Illinois Budget System.1

The State of Illinois has attacked the problem of budget-making from a point of view somewhat different from that of the typical budget system. In 1913 the General Assembly of Illinois adopted an act creating a Legislative Reference Bureau and assigning to that Bureau the duty of preparing, printing, and distributing a detailed budget for the use of the Legislature. This Bureau is made up of the Governor and the chairmen of the legislative committees of both houses. It should be explained, however, that the Governor and the chairmen of the legislative committees are only nominally active in the functions of the Bureau, and that the actual work is done by the secretary. The Bureau is practically a recess committee of the Legislature, engaged in accumulating information for the use of that body when it is in session.

Although the Illinois legislation marks a step in the proper direction, it falls short of establishing an adequate budget plan. The first budget which was prepared was a mass of detailed items not very carefully classified and more likely to bewilder than to enlighten the appropriation committees.2 The experience of Illinois would indicate, therefore, that it is unwise to confer the function of preparing the budget upon a bureau which is poorly equipped, which does not make recommendations and which assumes no definite responsibility for the budget.

Oregon Budget Law.3

Oregon, like Illinois, has also made some advance in furnishing the Legislature with more complete information as to appropriations, although not possessing a complete budget system.

Under the Oregon statute, which was enacted in 1913, the heads of departments are required to file their requests for appropriations with the Secretary of State who prepares the budget. The law does not give the Secretary authority to make recommendations, but merely directs him to compile the estimates in systematic form, together with comparative data. The Secretary submits his tabulation

1 Annals of American Academy of Political and Social Science, November, 1915, John A. Fairlie, "Budget Methods in Illinois," pp. 85-90; and Finley F. Bell, "Illinois Budget," pp. 73-84. See also Illinois Budget,

1915-16.

2 Ibid., "Budget Methods in Illinois," pp. 88-90.

3 Laws of Oregon, 1913, chapter 284. Also Estimate of Expenditures (Budget), State of Oregon, 1915-16. Also letters from Mr. T. B. Kay, State Treasurer, August 30, 1916.

to the members of the Legislature and to the Governor, and the Governor is also required to present the tabulation to the members of the Legislature with such recommendations as he deems proper. Thus the Oregon law makes the Secretary of State responsible for the preparation and tabulation of estimates and their initial submission to the Legislature, but provides that the Governor shall also transmit the budget with such general recommendations as he personally thinks advisable.

V. THE BOSTON SEGREGATED BUDGET.

American cities have been much more radical than the States in introducing budget methods, and since the financial problems of a large metropolitan city are somewhat similar to those of the State a brief review of the new segregated budget system of Boston will perhaps be of some value.

Mayor initiates Budget. - The Boston Charter Amendments of 1909 establish an "executive budget," the provision being that "all appropriations, other than for school purposes, to be met from taxes, revenue or any source other than loans shall originate with the mayor, who within thirty days after the beginning of the fiscal year shall submit to the city council the annual budget of the current expenses of the city and county, and may submit thereafter supplementary budgets until such time as the tax rate for the year shall have been fixed."

The mayor not only initiates the budget, but the power of the council in considering the same is somewhat restricted. According to the charter, the council may reduce or reject any item in the budget, but may not increase or add to the same without the mayor's consent.

Lump-sum Method. Prior to 1916 the method of preparing the annual budget was inadequate to secure proper control over expenditures. Although uniform estimate sheets were provided for, some departments did not use them, on the ground that they did not meet their requirements, and presented their requests in some other form. The department heads were not fully examined as to their estimates, and competent analyses were not made of the same. Moreover, the examinations that were made were generally with reference only to the total amounts requested and not to the items