After the adoption of the budget, the board of taxes and assess ments prepares the assessment rolls. These must be delivered on March i to the board of aldermen, which must meet not later than the first Monday in March to fix the annual tax rates. When this has been done and the amounts to be collected from the various taxpayers have been extended upon the rolls, the board of aldermen must deliver them not later than March 28, to the receiver of taxes or city collector directing him to collect the taxes as set forth, and to pay them to the city chamberlain. The city collector is chief of the bureau of city collections in the department of finance.
Fiscal affairs are in general under the control of the controller, who is the head of the department of finance. The functions of this office are, mainly, the collection of revenues, the audit of accounts, the maintenance of the general accounting system, in vestigation of all matters involving finances, the preparation of accounting statistics, and the adjustment of claims. The treasurer is, however, the city chamberlain, who is appointed by the mayor. Although under the charter the chamberlain is in the department of finance, he is actually quite independent of this department.
Other officers, boards and commissions exercising functions of fiscal control or collection of revenues are the sinking fund com mission, the commissioners of accounts and of purchase, the de partments of licences and of taxes and assessments, the board of assessors and the banking commission. The sinking fund com mission consists of the mayor, controller, president of the board of aldermen, city chamberlain and chairman of the finance corn mittee of the board of aldermen, ex officio. The department of li cences, under a commissioner appointed by the mayor, is respon sible for the licensing and supervising of about 35 different busi nesses, including public amusements. The licensing of public hacks is, however, vested in the police department, and a number of other forms of licence are under supervision of departments par ticularly concerned with inspection, as the health and fire depart ments. The board of aldermen determines the general conditions of licensing. Collection of licence fees is commonly made by the department issuing the licence.
police force of the city of New York numbered over 19,000 members in 1936. It is under the direction of a civ ilian commissioner, whose normal salary is set at $15,000 a year. He is appointed and is removable at the pleasure of the mayor. The headquarters of the police department are in Manhattan.
There are 34 precinct station houses in Manhattan, 34 in Brook lyn, 15 in Queens, 13 in the Bronx and 3 in Richmond.
The administrative activities of the department are carried on through the commissioner and six deputy commissioners, while the uniformed force is under the supervision of a chief inspector.
A significant feature of the police department is its academy for training, through which all recruits must pass. The total expendi ture for the police department of the city in 1936 was 441.38, the great bulk of which was allotted to personal service. The total number of arrests on criminal charges in 1935 was 732,233.
fire commissioner at $11,000 a year, appointed by and removable at the pleasure of the mayor, heads the fire depart ment, which has a uniformed personnel of 6,802 men. At the head of this force and in charge of fire-fighting is the chief of the department, who receives an annual salary equal to that of the commissioner.
In addition to these there are I deputy commissioner ($7,340), 4 deputy chiefs ($7,500 each), 29 deputy chiefs ($6,30o each), 96 battalion chiefs ($5,300 each), 2 captains ($5,000), 339 captains 554 lieutenants ($3,90o), 5,65o firemen (with salaries ranging from $2,000 to $3,000). There are 236 engine companies, 131 hook and ladder companies, 1 combination company, 4 rescue companies, 7 fire-boats, 3 search lights, 3 gas wagons, and ambulance. The total appropriation for the service in 1935 was $22,033,000. In 1936 there were 28,506 fires in New York City resulting in losses amounting to $7,723,63o. Of this loss $2,700, 120 occurred in Manhattan, $2,781,405 in Brooklyn, $874,400 in Queens, $1,209,385 in the Bronx, and $158,32o in Richmond. Deaths from fires totalled 125.