The news in this publi
cation is released for the
press on receipt.
THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA
NEWS LETTER
Published Weekly by the
University of North Caro
lina for the University Ex
tension Division.
OCTOBER 13, 1926
CHAPEL HILL, N C.
THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA PRESS
VOL. XII, NO. 48
Editorial Hwardj B. C. Branson, S. H. Hobba. Jr.. L. R. Wiiaon. E. W. Knight. D. D. Carroll, J. B. Bullitt. H, W. Odum.
Entered aa aecond-claas matter November 14, 1914, at the Poatoffice at Chapel Hill. N. C., under the act of Auguat 24, 1911
IMPROVED COUNTY GOVERNMENT
REPORT OF COMMISSION ON COUNTY GOVERNMENT
At the annual meeting of the Stale
Association of County Commissioners,
held at Blowing Rock, August 1925, the
.rovernor was requested to appoint a
, immissi n to study county govern-
..lent and make recommendations for
Its improvement. The Governor, acting
on this request, appointed a Commission
composed of the following; Mr. Edwin
B. Bridges, Charlotte; Dr. E. C. Brooks,
Raleigh; Mr. F. H. Coffey, Lenoir; Mr.
G. V. Cowper, Kington; Mr. E. M.
Lyda, Asheville; Professor A. C.
McIntosh, Chapel Hill; Mrs E. L.
McKee, Sylva; Mr. D. W. Newsom,
Durham; Mrs. Thomas O’Berry, Wil
mington; Mr. J. A. Orreil, Wilmington;
Mr. F. P. Spruill, Rocky Mount; Mr.
J. G. Stancill, Margarettsville; Mr. R.
L Stone, Belmont; Mr. S. T. White,
Greenville.
The Commission met soon afterward
in the Governor’s office and organized,
electing E C. Brooks, President of
State College, as Chairman, and
A. C. McIntosh, Professor of Law at
the University of North Carolina, as
Secretary.
The full Commission held four meet
ings, two in Raleigh, one in Chapel
Hill, and one in Morehead City. At
these meetings reports of sub-com
mittees were received and fully dis
cussed. The Institute for Research in
Social Science, of the University, made
a very careful and accurate analysis of
the government of about thirty coun
ties the results of which were used
freely by the Commisson. The report
of the Commission which was adopted
by the State Association of County
Commissioners deals in the main with
defects in fiscal management and sug
gestions for its improvement.
“It is very apparent” says the report
“that the amount of service that maj
be rendered the citizens of any county
h dependent primarily upon the re
sources of the county and the business
methods and practices employed, and
the more efficient are the business
practices, the greater the service that
the resources will support. A county
possessing large resources may have
poor government and comparatively
small returns from the expenditure of
public fund^ if the resources are
ws^stod through inefficient business
management. ”
After a careful study of a large
number of counties, therefore, the
members of the Commission were un
animous in their conclusion that the
following functions well performed will
insure good business management, but
when poorly performed result in poor
business management and a loss of
public service.
(1) Maintaining unity in the offi
cial family of a county in fiscal manage
ment; (2) Preserving the taxables of a
county; (3) Collecting the revenue fairly
and justly; (4) Safeguarding the rev
enue through proper accounting; (5)
Safeguarding the expenditures through
budget control and a central purchasing
agent; (6) Protecting the physical prop
erty of the county, and (7) Providing
properly for the administration of
justice.
The Commi^sicn, therefore, in its
report presented these functions, giving
the defects that invariably appear where
they are not properly safeguarded, and
offering suggestions for safeguarding
them—suggestions taken from a num
ber of counties where they have been
tried and found very effective. These
seven functions will be presented and
discussed separately in succeeding issues
of the News Letter.
Necessary Machinery
“The machinery necessary to safe
guard these major functions” says the
report “is rather simple and does not
involve any marked changes in our sys
tem of county government. In fact many
counties have already adopted it in part.
However, the machinery should be
elastic, and at first it should be optional
with the counties as to which of these
suggestions shall be adopted. Counties
in which the annual expenditure
amounts to more than a million dollars
might need a separate official to per
form each of the first six major func
tions. But counties in which the an
nual expenditure is between five hun
dred thousand and a million dollars
might cornbine with advantage auditor
and manager, or auditor and purchasing
agent, or the custodian of physical
property with the duties of one of the
Commissioners; and counties in which
the expenditure is less than five hun
dred thousand dollars might make fur
ther combinations, such as sheriff and
tax collector, treasurer and auditor,
manager and Chairman of Board of
County Commissioners, etc. Other
combinations suitable to particular
counties might also be made. The
important thing to remember is that
guarded and some official should be j
held personally responsible for its per-1
formance.” j
the
fiscal management, therefore, is sug
gested, subject to such combinations of
functions as the business of a county
might demand:
1. A Board of County Commis
sioners, to be elected by the people for
a term longer' than two years, tut
not all the members to retire within any
given year. This will give continuity
of business management. It should
have supervision of the entire business
of the county. The Board should have
at least the same degree of supervision
over fiscal management that the Board
of Education, for example, has over
School administration, or the Road
Board over the construction of high
ways. It should have the authority to
employ specially trained men to perform
special functions.
2. A Business Manager, selected and
salary fixed by the Board of County
Commissioners. He may be Chair
man of the Board of County Commis
sioners, or the Auditor or some other
competent citizen. The duties of the
Business Manager should be to study
ihe entire business of the county, make
reports to the Commissioners, and aid
the Board in unifying the business and
in securing the best results from
expenditure of the funds.
3. A Supervisor of Taxables, selected
and salary fixed by the Board of County
Commissioners. In some counties he
may also be the Auditor. His duties
should be: (1) To keep an up-to-date
record of all the sources of revenue; (2)
To inspect property in every section of
the county for improvements and de
preciations and report the same to the
Board of County Commissioners, and
the Commissioners should have
thority to readjust values, at least
once each year; (3) To inspect offices
receiving fees, tines, forfeitures, and
penalties, and report the same to tbe
Commissioners' through the Business
Manager; (4) To supervise the listing
of all taxes and to appoint the list
takers; (5) To prepare the tax books
for the collector; and (6) To check the
collector’s accounts by the tax books.
4. A Tax Collector, selected and his
salary fixed by the Board of County
Commissioners. The Commissioners also
shall have authority to select his assis
tants. He may be the Sheriff, if the
Commissioners desire to elect him.
His duties should be to be on the job
constantly, collecting the revenue from
all sources. He should deposit col
lections daily, report periodically to
the Commissioners through the Busi
ness Manager. He should give ample
bond to protect the county’s funds and
he should be required at the end of the
fiscal year to make a complete settle
ment. His collections should be checked
with the individual amounts due.
5. An Auditor, selected and
salary fixed by the Board of Commis
sioners, whose duties should be to check
all expenditures by the budget and
authorize all payments, to hold each
department to a strict accountability
for living within the budget and to
keep a daily audit of all accounts.
6. A Purchasing Agent, selected
and his salary fixed by the Board of
County Commissioners. His duties
should be to purchase all supplies after
the purchase has been approved and
the proper requisition filed. In some
counties he might be the Auditor or a
clerk in the office of the auditor.
7. A Treasurer may be elected by
the people or selected by the Board of
County Commissioners. He should be
the Custodian of all revenue, make dis-
bursements promptly, keep within the
budget of each department, collect
interest on bank balances, and keep his
books in harmony with those of the
KNOW NORTH CAROLINA
Taxable Wealth
Taxable wealth
$2,711,784,000
Listed by whites
$2,293,263,000
Listed by negroes...
$107,146,000
Public utilities, etc.
Per inhab taxables.
$311,386,000
all wealth
$1,010
Per inhab. negro tax-
able wealth*
$133
Per inhab. white tax-
able wealth* ..
$1,085
Percent of taxable
wealth white-owned
96
Percent of taxable
wealth negro-owned
4
* Includes real and personal prop
erty and domestic corporations only.
I personal property listed by negroes in ! ninety-six per cent of al! taxes levied
eluding the taxed value of negro cor- ! property,
porations, amounts to $107,145,388. itj How the Counties RanK
is not likely that the negro owns much Durham county ranks first in negro
Auditor. He should be prohibited from
paying vouchers tnat exceed the budget
allotment.
8. A Custodian of Physical Prop-
interest in foreign corporations or public
utilities. The bulk of his wealth consists
of real and personal property, along
taxable wealth, with $336 per inhabitant.
The average negro in Yancey county is
worth only sixty-three dollars on the
tax books. Five mountain counties do
with the value of a few negro corpora-; not report any wealth listed by negroes.
tions found here and there.
The total value of all real and per
sonal property listed by the whites, in
cluding the taxed value of white-owned
corporations, in 1924 was $2,293,253,687,
and the average was $1,086 per white
inhabitant. The whites own a great
deal of additional wealth such as stock
in foreign corporations, bank stock,
public utilities, etc., which is not in
cluded in the total listed above.
Probably the small amount was
eluded with the white property. It is
interesting to note that, three city
counties, and three mountain counties
with small negro ratios, comprise the first
six counties in the accompanying table.
The counties that come next are
mainly tidewater and mid-state coun
ties in which the negro ratios are
not excessive. But after a few city
and tidewater counties have been dis
posed of there seem to be very few
furthe* groups or trends that can be
Board of
may be
Assuming that the data are compar- j poinied out. Negro wealth appears to
able, the real and personal property j be listed in conformity with our general
holdings of Negroes, as they appear on ! system of high values in one county
the tax books, are approximately one | and low values in another,
hundred and thirty-three dollars per , We would say that generally negroes
negro inhabitant, while the average for i appear to have accumulated more
the whites is about ten hundred and ; wealth in those counties in which they
eighty-five dollars. Judging by the ; are a moderate ratio of the total popula-
tax books the average white person I tion, and especially in such counties
owns eight times as much real and per- 1 with large cities. Generally where ne-
sonal property as the average negro. ■ groes are an excessive ratio, as in the
Other forms of wealth such as stock in j cotton and tobacco belt, and also where
foreign corporations, public utilities, | they are a very small ratio, they do not
the banks, etc., are owned almost en- ■, get ahead so rapidly. But there are
tirely by whites, so as a matter of fact i several exceptions to any conclusions
the average white person is more than [ that may be drawn, probably due to
erty, selected and salary fixed by the
County Commissioners. He | eight times as wealthy as the average j the lack of uniformicy in listing prop-
member of the Board of
County Commissioners or some other
member of the official family. His
duties should be to report to the Board
the condition of the county’s property
and the Board should hold the several
negro,—probably between ten
twelve times aa wealthy.
Negroes are about thirty percent of
our population, but only four-and-a-
haif percent of all real and personal
property, including corporations, is
listed by negroes. Wealth listed for
, , taxation other than real and personal
departments responsible for the care of , property amounts to $311,386,000. As-
the property. ; suming that this latter is white-owned,
9, The following county officers j the whites of the state pay more than
should be elected by the people and :v;' i'. r , =
their duties should remain substantially .
as they are now, except where they ■
conflict with duties assigned to officials 1
specified above: Register of Deeds, i
Sheriff, Clerk of Court, and Coroner.
and I erty for taxlation. Some mountain coun
ties rank high, some very low. And so
with every other geographic, economic,
or race-ratio group.
The accompanying table does not in
clude the three hundred dollar personal
property exemption allowed every tax
lister. It covers all wealth listed for
taxation by negroes aa reported in the
1926 report of the State Commissioner
of Revenue.
NEGRO TAXABLE WEALTH
Per Negro Inhabitant, 1924
10. The several Boards, such as j
B.jard of Education, Board of Health, |
Board of Agriculture, Board of Public I
Welfare, Highway Board, etc., should
be required to report annually to the
Board of County Commissioners on how
the money appropriated to each has
been spent, and wiiat service has been
performed as a result.
11. The machinery for preserving
law and order is referred to the Presi
dent of the Bar Association to be trans
mitted to the appropriate committee of
that Association. No change is recom
mended, except perhaps in the nature
of the reports that should be made.
12. Relation of the State to the
County Government.
(a) The General Assembly
should by a general act make it possi
ble for any county to adopt and main
tain an improved form of local govern
ment, suitable to (he needs of the
county.
(1)) It is imperative that the
General Assembly adopt a policy pro
hibiting an individual member of the
Assembly from mierfering with the
government of his county, as set up by
the people in accordance with the law,
unless it shall appear to the whole
General Assembly that the change is
demanded by the people of the county,
and is in the interests of better local
government. The present parliamen
tary procedure, which permits a repre
sentative through “common consent”
to alter, modify, or abolish offices and
functions, or to be exempt from the
operations of State-wide legislation,
sometimes as a result of a factional
fight in bis county, makes it difficult to
maintain a good government.
(c) The General Assembly
should set up a State Department of
Finance and Accounting to aid counties
his ' ill readjusting themselves to any im
proved plan, and in safeguarding func-
In (he following table, based on the 1925 report of the State Commissioner
of Revenue, the counties are ranked according to wealth listed by negroes for
taxation in May 1924 per negro inhabitant. The accompanying column shows
the total negro taxable wealth for each county. The table covers all real
and personal property, and domestic negro corporations. The $300 personal
property exemption allowed every tax lister is not included.
Durham county ranks first in taxable wealth per negro inhabitant, with
$336. Durham has some large negro corporations. Three mountain coun
ties follow Durham. Yancey ranks last with $63 of wealth listed for taxa
tion per negro inhabitant. Wake ranks first in total negro taxable wealth, the
amount being $5,126,390. Durham is second and Forsyth is third. Five
mountain counties do not report any property listed by negroes.
State total of negro taxable wealth $107,146,388, or $133.00 per negro in
habitant.
S. H. Hobbs, Jr.,
Department of Rural Social-Economics, University of North Carolina
Negro Per negro
Rank County taxable inhab.
wealth
1 Durham $4,402,693... . $336
2 Jackson 320,931.. .. 292
3 Buncombe 2,700,640 281
4 Alleghany 89,994 270
6 Guilford 4,200,404 242
6 New Hanover ... 3,142,091 191
7 Warren 2,642,831 190
8 Carteret 429,611 180
9 Chowan 950,607 179
10 Rowan 1,647,698 178
11 Brunswick 928,387 176
11 Orange 990,106 176
11 Wake 6,125,390 176
14 Craven 2,620,324 1-2
15 Hertford 1,656,748 .. .. 166
16 Person 1,321,400 166
17 Bladen 1,294,500 160
17 Swain 18,396 160
1
Rank County
19 Forsyth 4,146,634.
19 Martin 1,661,671
21 Surry 364,674
22 Duplin 1,683,683
23 Henderson 273,024
23 Perquimans 833,406
26 Columbus 1,421,219
26 Tyrrell 216,313
27 Johnston 1,666,961
28 Alamance 1,078,103 144
29 Cumberland 2,040,048 143
29 Wilson 2,334,938 143
31 Wayne 2,674,711 141
32 Gates 709,637 140
32 Rutherford 624,976 140
169
169
163
162
160
150
148
146
146
tions essential to good county govern
ment, but it should be made very clear
tuat this department shall have no
control whatever over the government
of the county.
(d) The General Assembly
should provide for the preparation of a
code of county government law, and a
manual on county government, em
bodying the law, and suggestions for
organizing government in counties of
different sizes and wealth, and contain
ing such detailed directions as may be ir^dell 960,263 130
helpful to officials in safeguarding the Granville 1,637,110 129
revenue and expenditures. 45 Cabarrus 813,036 128
' ‘46 Greene 1,063,390 128
NEGRO TAXABLE WEALiH
The average negro in North Caro- ^^ 480,876 124
lina is worth approximately one | gQ Q^^^den 261,401 123
dred and thirty-three dollars on the tax
book.«. The total value of all real and includes Indians
34 J>ertie 1,894,938..
35 Pasquotank 1,083,329..
36 Halifax 3,666,096....
37 Pamlico 437,861....
37 Vance 1,384,613....
39 Moore 863,718...
39 Stokes 298,771.. .
41 Beaufort 1,668,876..,.
41 Davidson 467,059..
139
138
137
136
136
131
131
130
130
Negro Per negro
taxable inhab.
wealth
50 Richmond $1,294,689 $123
62 Clay 15,593 121
63 Davie 244,424 120
63 Pitt 2,759,484 120
53 Robeson* 3,612,288 120
66 Northampton... 1,630,523 118
67 Jones 620,846. .. . 117
67 Pender 859,706 .... 117
57 Sampson 1,426,398 117
60 Yadkin 127,282 116
61 Chatham 885,181 . ... 113
62 Harnett 872,864 112
62 McDowell 221.771 112
62 Onslow 496,611 112
65 Dare 44,164 Ill
65 Mitchell 6,223 Ill
65 Nash 1,936,350 Ill
68 Cleveland 667,363 110
68 Currituck 289,764 110
68 Lenoir 1,441,936 110
71 Avery 24,935 103
71 Gaston 963,940 103
71 Mecklenburg.... 2,753,765 103
71 Randolph 366,682 103
76 Caswell 796,811 102
102
102
100
99
99
?5 Washington 656,776.
76 Wilkes 236,197
78 Caldwell 196,767.
79 Anson 1,392,167
79 Edgecombe 2,210,794
81 Watauga 19,916 98
82 Alexander 84,594 97
82 Lincoln 217,109 97
84 Haywood 67,480 96
84 Union 827,890 95
86 Catawba 326,206 91
86 Transylvania ... 67,360 91
88 Franklin 1,041,666 88
270,802 82
89 Montgomery..
89 Stanly 291,126 82
91 Scotland 736,862 80
92 Cherokee ..
93 Burke
24,849 77
195,021 73
94 Hyde 212,375 66
96 Yancey.
Ashe
Graham..
Macon
Madison..
Polk
17,227 63
None reported