The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1892-10-20
Proposed Constitutional Amendments

Proposed Constitutional Amendments
70 Oe uoted apon at the nert General Election,
(PtblisiteI IN Pursuance 0f Chapter 157,
General LdWs of 1884,
WHEhEAS, it is made the duty by law of
the Attorney General to prepare synopsis
OF AL amendments proposed to the cOnstltu-
ton, uO,i ICE l, hereby gwen that the following
amendments are submitted to the voters OF
The State OF Minnesota, to be voted upon at
tn" general election TO be held in tine year
1892.
RUSSIAN act proposing to amend Section
81 vi Article four ~ OF the Constitution OF
the state oi Minnesota, prohibiting special
legislation.
The following amendment to Section ;3 of
Article OF the Constitution of the State OF
Minnesota is hereby proposed, which section,
when so amended shall read as follows:
SEC 3D. In ali cases when general law can
be made applicable no special law shall be
enacted; aud whether a general law could
have been made applicable in any case is
hereby declared a judicial question, ana as
such shall be judiciaily determined without
regard to any legislative assertion on that
subject. The legislature shall pass no local
or special law regulating the affairs of, or in
cooperating, erecting or changing the lines
of any county, city, village. township, ward or
school district, or creating the Offices Or pre-
scribing the powers and duties Of the officers
of, fixing or re,ating to the cOmpen-
SatlOn, SALARY lees VI tue SAME, VI Tue
mode of election or appointment thereto;
aut b, riZng the las ing out, opening. altering,
vaca,ing or maintaining roads, highways,
stree,s or alleys: RENTING fines, penalties or
forfeiture 5; regulating the powers, duties
and practices OF justices of the peace, maglS-
trates and c ,,slaoes; changing the names OF
persons, places lakes or rivers; for opening
ana conc ucCing OF eiectionS, or fixing or
Changing me places ri voting, authorizing
the adoption .r ieYit,mation OF children;
changing the law U, descent or succession;
named person of age, giving effect to in
formal Or invalid wills or deeds. or affecting
the estates OF minors Or persons unuer dis
ability. locating Or changing county seats;
regulating the management ofpublic schools,
the building OF repairing OF school houses,
ana the raising OF money for such purposes:
exemptlng property from TAXATION. regu-
lting the rate OF interest %: hl'ity; Great
iny curpOrat iOi.S or AMENDING 'ci!,:s ....s. X
tending or explaining thu cnaiie,s thereof;
granting to any corporation, as,."i Id l'n or in
.4ivduai any special or cxcu>N; irilege,
immunity or franchise whatever .'r author
izinv pubic taxation for p'ivatt w, pose.
ltp0ided horerai. I hat th. ibit' rs of
cal Or SPECIAL laws j., 1hi section shall not
construed to prevent the passage Of sc,-
err. laws on any OF these subj CTS e''unel a1ed.
The legislature may repeal amy existing
special or local law, but shall. not amend. ex-
tend or modify any of the same.
The ballots to be used in voting upon said
amendmen, shall have printed thereon:
"Amendlnent to Article Four 4)iYE,
of the Constitution 10 prohibit Nh
special legislation w -
And each voter shall vote upon by placing
cross * opposite yes" it ne desires to
mo" ii be desires to vote i'll the negative.
SECOND-The following amendment to
secti' n three l0 of Article nine l9y OF the
Constitution of the State OF Minnesota is
hereby proposed TO the people OF said State
for their approval or rejection that is to say.
to add at the end of said section the following
words:
And there may be levied and collected
annually a tax upon the gross earnings in
this state of all railroads, sleeping. parior
and drawing room car companies, or owners
whose cars run in or into this State; on all
telegraph and telephone companies. or own
ers. whose lines are in or extend into this
State; on all express companies or owners,
doing business in this State; on all foreign
insurance. companies doing business in this
State: on all domestic insurance companies
Of this State. or on either or any OF such
companies Or in lieu of such tax on the
gross earnings Ut such companies, or either
or any of them. an annual license fee or tax
imposed on them. or either or any OF them;
but no TAX upon the gross earnings of any
corporation shall be construed to preventive
taxation, by law, of any real estate owned by
said corporation not used in the business of
the same. And there may be levied and col
lected in lieu OF other taxation on mining
property specific tax upon the product OF
all mines in this State, and no such tax shall
be construed to pr event the taxation by law
of any real estate belonging to the owners of
such mine not used in the business OF mining
or i'm connection herewith.
Section three (3) of Article nine (9) OF the
State Constitution, which it is proposed to
amend as above, now reaus as follows:
SEC B. Laws shall be passed taxing all
stocks, joint stock companies or otherwise,
and also all real and personal property, ac-
cOrdi,g to its true value in money, but public
burying grounds, public school houses. public
HOSPITALS. academies. colleges, universities.
and all seminaries OF learning. all churches,
church property used for religious purposes,
and houses Of worship, institutions OF purely
sively for any public purpose, and personal
property to an amount not exceeding in value
two hundred dollars for each individual. shall.
by general laws be exempt from taxation.
The ballots used ia voting upon said section
shall have printed thereon Amendment to
Section three (3) of Article nine 90 of the
providing for the taxation of
sleeping car companies and other companies:
YES-NO." and the voters in voting upon
such amendment shall erase. mark acre IS or
mo" If he desires to vote in the affirmative
he shall scratch out the word mo-" if he de-
sires to vote in the negative. he shall scratch
out the word Eyes"
EXPLANATION.
1t will be seen that the manner of voting
upon these two proposed amendments is en-
tirely different. The reason for this is that
the first amendment was proposed under an
eral election law of 1891, and is 10 be voted
upon subject to the provisions OF said gem
eral election law. But the second prOposed
is submitted under an act of the
legislature passed after tn general election
law of 1891, and in terms provides how it shall
be voted upon, and as above in iicated.
The object of the first proposed amendment
is to restrict special legislation.
The object of the second proposed amend
ment is to regulate the taxation of railroads,
sleeping, drawing room and parlor car com.
panies. telegraph and telephone companies.
express and insurance companies. by taxing
the gross earnings or by q licensed fee; and
ant horizing specific tax on mining property
T-3t MOSES e. CLAPP,
July Z, 1889, Attorney General.