The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1890-05-17
KANSAS REVISED LAWS.

The committee appointed by the state
senate at its last session to codify the
laws of the state have devoted conSidera-
ble time and labor on that work during
the last year, and the progress made so
far viii be of interest to many. The
work is not completed, though good
progress has been made notwithstanding
the many hindrances to the work to
which the committee have been sub
jected. The committee is composed of
Senators Hardness, Murdoch, Moody,
Kelly and Kimball. In a recent inter-
view Senator Kimball gave the substance
OF what the committee has done in the
matter of revision. He said:
There seems to be quite a general I'M
Outstanding that this committee is to re-
wise and codify the entire body of the
statutes. This is not so; the committee
Is only authorized to revise. cOdify and
recommend necessary changes in the
laws IN relation to state officers, boards.
commissioners, ETC., their powers and
duties, and state institutions. Even this
covers a field broad enough to make
plenty of work for the committee. 1t
includes of course the elective Off
GERS of the state, the board of
trustees Of state charitable institu
tons, with the insane asylumS, the
schools for the deaf and dumb, and
blind, the industrial reform schools, etc,
eight institutions in all in charge of
that board; the board of directors of the
penitentiary, and the managers of the
Hutchinson refOrmatory: the state prin-
ter, the railroad, state house and
insurance commissioners, the re-
gents of the state university, agricul
tural college and normal schools, the
laws relating to all of these institutions
and several other officers and institutions
which have not mentioned.
In many cases we find that an amend
ment to one statute makes it conflict
with or renders nugatOry some section,
or provision of another statute; and in
order to make everything harmonic it
becomes necessary to take up and amend
that statute which may be incidentally
connected with the subject under con-
sideratiOn.
Zone of the important changes recon-
mended Will be the establishment of a
board OF public works, to charge, in con-
junction with the state architect, of all
works done by the state on public build
lngs, ETC., the plans therefor to be pre-
served at the Office of the state achiteCt
and to belong to the state. The changes
contemplated will put all expenditures
of money for public buildings under the
responsible management of one board
and one architect, who of course will
have assistants, and will undoubtedly re-
suit in great saving to the state.
another important change will be in
relation TO the state printing. The jour
nails of the legislature, the reports of
many of the state officers, boards, etc,
have heretofore been padded and in
creased in size by Implications, copies of
reports and papers in full that might be
condensed, and much other useless mat
ter. Then at present there is no limita-
ton as to the amount of supplies, sta
tionery and printing which the state
printer is required to furnish, or who
shall be authorized to make acquisitions
therefor, so that the state has heretofore
been paying for nearly double the
amount of material and printing actual
ly necessary, and at prices in many in
much higher than they ought to
be. The bills prepared by the COM
mittee on this subject will greatly re-
duce the amount of work done. as we'll
as the prices paid, and result in saving
to the state many thousands of dollars
''The committee has decided to recon-
mend bill requiring all private banks
and banks organized under state laws to
publish sworn statements quarterly,
showing their assets and liabilities, and
otherwise to place them under many of
the restrictions imposed by law upon
national banks. The committee believe
that a law of this kind, if not affording
entire protection, would be a great safe
guard to depositors and others doing
business with these banks, and the
would afford basis for tax
ing the capital invested in these institu-
tons in proportion to their property. |
The committee at its last meeting also
TO recommend such changes |
in the law relating to assessments |
and taxation as will result in |
the assessed value of all proper
tv up to its true value. While this is the /
letter as well as the spirit of the law now,
vet the practice is universal and motor |
ious all over the state to assess property |
at from one-tenth to one-half its real |
the state board of railroad assessors for |
assessing the railroads at only 40 per |
cent of their actual value: but. as COM
pared with the average assessed valua- /
ton of other property throughout the /
state, that rate is greater than the average /
and fully as high as it should be. In |
addition to the injustice of this system /
Of under valuation resulting from its !
l. 1,
TO the reputation of the state by it. To |
the section providing for an annual meet |
ing of the assessors to agree upon an equal .
basis of valuation should be added pro- |
yiso that nothing therein should be con- /
strued as permitting or authorizing the /
OF any property at less than /
its true value Then the law in relation I
to the state and county boards of equal /
zation should be amended so as not only /
to authorize but to make it mandatory
on each of these boards, whenever they /
had reason TO believe that any property
had been returned or assessed at less
than its actual value, to raise it. With .
the law amended as suggested. and en-
forced. the assessed valuation for 1891 /.
would be more than treble and the tax
LEWIS would be less than One-thiTd as high 4
a. for the year. Then that will affect
the statutes limiting municipal indebted
ness to a certain percentage Of the
assessed valuation. These statutes viii I.
all have to be amended, reducing the
limitations to about one-third OF what
.hpy>are at present. I am now engaged /
in preparing bills covering these matters
in relation 10 assessment, etc, which
will be considered by the committee at
its next meeting. The work Of the com +
mittee is pretty well under way. We
hope to have it completed In two or
three months"