VPRS 14588 Loans Liquidation Register

This series consists of a loans register which was maintained by the City of Moorabbin (VA 656) to document their liquidation loan accounts. The ledgers nominated the loan amounts, detailed their payments and the respective dates until the loans had been paid. The register included the schedule of payments on the loan, the date of payment, particulars and folio number (further research is required to identify what the folio number refers to), balance, and amount.The need for accounting records in relation to the borrowing of money by the Council was indicated by Part XIV of the Local Government Act 1915 (Act No. 2686) and later Acts. Under this Act, Municipal Councils were entitled to borrow money for permanent works or undertakings, or to liquidate the principal moneys owing by the municipality on account of any previous loans. The Act specified the types of acceptable permanent works required to qualify for the loan, and the amount of money that council were permitted to borrow.When a municipality incurred a loan and the debentures were issued so that the principal moneys secured were payable on the same day, or were payable in different years, the municipality could cause a percentage of the principal loan to be used as a sinking fund. Interest on the sinking fund was to be invested.Municipal councils could invest sinking funds to liquidate loans under the Local Government Act 1928 (Act No. 3720) Section 419, Local Government Act 1958 (Act No. 6299) Section 420 and later Acts. Every year until the complete liquidation of the loan or until the Auditor-General by writing certified that the amount of the sinking fund was sufficient to liquidate the loan, money was to be invested in Victorian Government Three Percent Stock or in stock bearing an interest rate not less than five per cent per annum as directed by the Governor-in-Council and indicated by publication in the Victorian Government Gazette. Stock so obtained was to be placed in the stock ledgers in the names of the Treasurer of Victoria and of the Municipality to a special liquidation loan account.Before municipal councils could proceed to borrow money for permanent works, plans and specifications of the works and an estimate of the cost of the works as well as a statement showing the proposed expenditure of the borrowed money were to be gathered. These were to be made available for public inspection for a month following notification in the Victorian Government Gazette of the proposed works and intention to borrow money.Government Gazette notifications of intention to borrow were to be placed between one to six months before proceeding with the special order to borrow money. Notifications were also to be placed twice in newspapers which were circulated in the local area. During the month provided for public inspection of the plans of works, ratepayers had the opportunity to express their concerns to the council, which could result in the works being submitted to a poll of ratepayers before plans were allowed to proceed. If the number of ratepayers objecting to the plans did not exceed the limit permissible by the Local Government Act, municipal councils could proceed with the loan between one to six months after the publication of the notification by submitting a special order. This special order was to be approved by the majority of council members at a council meeting, and if the money was to go towards works which involved the taking of land or easement term right or privilege affecting land, an authorisation and confirmation of the loan by the Minister was necessary.Moneys borrowed by municipal councils were to be raised by the sale of debentures, which were numbered consecutively in a running number sequence. Each debenture specified the principal sum, the rate of interest payable, the time and places of payment, the date of the publication of the notification in the Government Gazette, and, in the case of liquidation loans, the percentage upon the amount of the loan to be invested in Victorian Government, and the total amount of the loan and date of repayments if the loan was to be liquidated by periodical repayments. Each debenture was to be sealed by the council's common seal, signed by the chairman, municipal clerk and by the municipal treasurer, and dated. Bearers of debentures were to receive payment of the principal sum specified by the debenture by presenting them to the banking institution specified on or after the date specified.