CONFIDENTIAL
(3)
(4)
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Works Non-Recurrent (a) authority to approve cost estimate increases up to 10% of approved cost up to a limit of $500,000, provided the Urban Council
can meet the higher cost from its own resources.
(b) authority to exceed the
expenditure for the year for any individual item provided the total cost of such item remains at the project estimate.
Staff salaries and wages
authority to meet the cost
of additional staff for which posts have been approved by Finance Committee for secondment to the Urban Council.
For any
These arrangements would satisfactorily underline Legislative Council's control of Urban Council finances while still giving reasonable powers of decision to the Urban Council. supplementary expenditure falling outside of this delegated authority the Urban Council would have to seek the Legislative Council's approval, in which case the Urban Council's request for authority should indicate how it was proposed to finance the expenditure in question, e.g. from a surplus of income over expenditure; from reserves;
or from an increase in the Urban
Council rate. It is proposed that no limit should be placed on the Urban Council's freedom to draw on its reserves to meet a
budget deficit.
20.
Although, in principle Government premises should not be exempted from liability to the Urban Council rate under this scheme, the Commissioner for Rating & Valuation's commitments, particularly in the rent-control field, make it impossible to allocate staff to make the necessary valuations; this would be a very lengthy job, involving such installations as the airport, K.C.R., quarters, offices, workshops, hospitals, piers, etc. Nor is there any way of producing even an approximate value as the basis for such a payment to the Urban Council.
/However,....
CONFIDENTIAL