STATE AND LOCAL EXPENDITURES 23 
tively lower than those of all but 2 states! When it is con- 
sidered that Missouri’s capital expenditures for social welfare 
amounted to less than $1.4 million during the period, or only 
about 0.5% of total expenditures for maintenance and capi- 
tal purposes, there seems to be little doubt that Missouri in 
recent years has failed to develop its social welfare insti- 
tutions in a manner commensurate with the needs of the 
state, 
ExPENDITURES OF Missouri Local GOVERNMENTS 
The gross expenditures of all local governments in Missouri 
for the fiscal year ended in 1928 are estimated at $163.6 
million.? Of this amount, the four cities over 30,0003 
accounted for 390.6 million. The latter figure includes the 
expenditures of school and other special districts within the 
four cities, and interest payments. It does not, however, in- 
clude payments for debt redemption. Without making any 
allowance for the latter factor, it would appear that the 
expenditures of local governments other than those of and 
within the four cities amounted to slightly less than 459, of 
the gross total for all local governmental divisions. 
The statistical information concerning local expenditures 
in Missouri, as previously stated, is not entirely satisfactory. 
Complete information is available concerning certain gov- 
ernmental expenditures, but the data concerning others are 
incomplete or unavailable. The best method of procedure, 
therefore, would seem to be to consider the expenditures for 
which data are available or can be reasonably estimated and 
then by a process of elimination to obtain an estimated total 
for all other expenditures. The data for cities over 30,000 
are complete for all governmental functions with the excep- 
tion that the expenditures of those cities for debt redemption 
cannot be segregated from the total for all local govern- 
ments. Accordingly, a later section of this chapter will be 
devoted to the expenditures of cities over 30.000. 
! Arkansas and Kentucky. 
* For method of obtaining this estimate, see Appendix B, p. 356. 
' St. Louis, Kansas City, St. Joseph, and Springfield.