Milo Roy Maltbie (born

Hinckley Hinckley is a market town in south-west Leicestershire, England, administered by Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council. Hinckley is the third largest settlement in Leicestershire, after Leicester and Loughborough, and is about halfway between L ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

, April 3, 1871; died

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, December 22, 1962) was an American economist who specialized in public utilities. He is best known for his service as the chairman of the

New York Public Service Commission The New York Public Service Commission is the public utilities commission of the New York state government that regulates and oversees the electric, gas, water, and telecommunication industries in New York as part of the Department of Public Ser ...

from 1930 to 1949.

Early life

Maltbie was the third of four children of Henry Munson Maltbie (1836–1902) and his wife Harriet Delano Maltbie (1840–1915). He graduated from

Upper Iowa University Upper Iowa University (UIU) is a private university in Fayette, Iowa, United States. It enrolls around 3,000 students and offers distance education programs that include centers in the U.S., an online program, an independent study program, an ...

in 1892, received a Ph.B at

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

in 1893 and a Ph.D. from

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

in 1897. He taught economics and mathematics at Mount Morris College in Mount Morris, Illinois from 1893 to 1895. From 1895 to 1897 Maltbie was a fellow in administrative law at Columbia. He was a student of legal scholar

Frank Johnson Goodnow Frank Johnson Goodnow (January 18, 1859 – November 15, 1939) was an American educator and legal scholar. He was the first president of the American Political Science Association. He was an elected member of both the American Academy of Arts a ...

there and contributed an article to a 1935 volume of essays in his honor.

Career

Maltbie had become interested in municipal governance; in 1897 he published ''English Local Government of Today, A Study of the Relations of Central and Local Governments''. From 1897 to 1902 Maltbie was the secretary of the City Reform Club in New York City; he travelled to Europe in 1899 to study the problems of municipal governance. He was also the editor of ''Municipal Affairs'', the quarterly publication of the club on civic reform. In 1898 the club published his ''Municipal Functions; A Study of the Development, Scope and Tendency of Municipal Socialism''. In 1901 he edited and contributed to a study of the street railways of Chicago; in the introduction he was referred to as "...a well-known writer on municipal and economic subjects..." Starting in 1901 Maltbie, building on the work of

Henry Carter Adams Henry Carter Adams (December 31, 1851 – August 11, 1921) was a U.S. economist and Professor of Political Economy and finance at the University of Michigan. Early years Adams was born in Davenport, Iowa on December 31, 1851, son of Ephraim Ada ...

on railroads, developed the idea of the "uniform system of accounts" for utilities, legally-required standards of accounting that required utilities to keep separate detailed records for each distinct part of their operations. From 1902 to 1907 Maltbie was the secretary of the

New York City Art Commission The New York City Public Design Commission, previously the Municipal Art Commission, is the agency of the New York City government that reviews permanent works of architecture, landscape architecture, and art proposed on or over city-owned proper ...

. After another visit to Europe he wrote a report on "Civic Art in Northern Europe: A Report to the Art Commission of the City of New York" in 1903. In June 1907 Maltbie was appointed to the newly created New York Public Utilities Commission, first division (Greater New York City), by governor

Charles Evans Hughes Charles Evans Hughes (April 11, 1862 – August 27, 1948) was an American politician, academic, and jurist who served as the 11th chief justice of the United States from 1930 to 1941. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...

. He was reappointed by successive governors until 1915. In 1916 he was appointed chamberlain of New York City by reform mayor

John Purroy Mitchel John Purroy Mitchel (July 19, 1879 – July 6, 1918) was the 95th mayor of New York, in office from 1914 to 1917. At 34, he was the second-youngest mayor of the city, and was sometimes referred to as the "Boy Mayor of New York". Mitchel won t ...

. Maltbie was frequently called upon to consult on utility rates and testify in court proceedings involving rate setting. Maltbie served as an advisor to the Federal Electric Railways Commission (1919–1920). In 1930 Maltbie was appointed as chairman of the reconstituted statewide New York Public Service Commission by governor

Franklin Delano Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...

, a post he held until 1949.

Family

Maltbie married Lucia McCosh (1869–1957) in 1901; they had no children.

Legacy

Maltbie donated over $500,000 to his alma mater Upper Iowa University in 1960 to build Maltbie-McCosh Hall, a men's dormitory. It was thought at the time to be one of the largest private donations in relation to the size of the university."Maltbies Cited for Gift to UIU", ''Cedar Rapids Gazette'', April 4, 1962, p. 3C

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maltbie, Milo Roy 1871 births 1962 deaths People from DeKalb County, Illinois Upper Iowa University alumni Northwestern University alumni Columbia University alumni New York Public Service Commission Economists from Illinois