The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1894-06-07
ARE TIE BILLS LAW
Difference on the Subject-The Ex-
ecutiVess Rights.
Special to the Jersey Cftg Nears.

TRENTON, June Z, 1S94-The stateme MT
that the failure of Governor Werts to sign
all the bills delivered to him at the adjourn
ment of the Legislature within five days,
necessarily makes them laws, has led to con
siderable discussion here. The Attorney
General was not at his office yesterday and
no opinion could be obtained from him, while
the Deputy Secretary of State. Alex. Hickey.
who receives the new laws, is not willing to
express an opinion on the subject. because it
is constitutional question, and he does not
desire TO go on record as an expositor OF con-
stitutional law.
The Governor on Tuesday signed the in
cidental bill, ten days after the adjourn
ment of the Legislature, and this act IS
interpreted by the Secretary OF State and
Others as indicating that the Governor in
terprets the clause of the Constitution pro
viding for executive action on passed bills
as meaning that he has the statutory thirty
DAYS in which to append his signature. The
State Constitution says plainly that, ''ff the
bill shall not be returned by the Governor
within five days Sunday excepted after it
shall have been presented to him, the same
shall be law in like manner as if he had
signed it, unless the Legislature, by their adj
iournment, prevents its return, III which
case it shall not be a law"
The Legislature having adjourned and not
being together, the Governor cannot return
any bill to which he objects, SO he falls back
on the statute and takes advantage of the
thirty days. A prominent Senator at the
State House says the kind of adjournment IS
not defined; it does not say whether it is
sine die or on recess, but the adjournment
means that, the Legislature not being con-
vened together, the Governor cannot make a
return to it. He signed the Incidental bill
ten DAYS after adjournment, and signed that
alone because it was a bill in which many
people are interested because of amounts
due them and, having been under pressure,
he signed it. There still remain in his
hands the Marriage License bill, the Natur
alization bill, bill making change in bor-
ough governments, the bill applying to ex
else commissions in firstrclass counties and
the Judiciary bill.
WHAT THE GOVERNOR MAY DO.
If these are not signed and sent to the
Secretary of States office by Saturday,
June 90 they fail to become laws, unless the
Governor veUoes them, and then he can keep
them locked up in his safe until next October
and transmit them in the regular way when
the Legislature meets. The Constitution
gives him the right to. eff he approve he
shall sign it, but if not, he shall return it,
with his objections, to the House in which it
shall have originated" No provision is
made for long recess, the Legislature not
being legally dissolved II they had separat-
ed without any day for reconvening they
would be considered body without power
to come together themselves and the Governor
would pursue the same course that he
did last year, when he sent to the State
Library a number of bills which he did not
see fit to approve, and to which he pinned, in
short messages, his objections to the provi-
sions OF the bills. He could not at that time
send them to the Legislature, for it had dis
solved without naming any day for resum-
ing it's legislative functions. In this case, if
he disapproves of all the five bills now in
his possession, he has not the right to send
them to the library, according to statutory
laws, but must obey the Constitutional man
date and return them to the House in which
the bills originated, having knowledge by
record that the Legislature is to resume its
functions sooner or later.
The burden of the comments here is that
the Governor has thirty days to consider the
bills and if he fails to sign in thirty days,
Legislature.
BRADLEY AND HAY FEVER.
Unless the Governor signs the Judiciary
bill it will be imperative Its provisions are
to go into effect in October, that period
being named because it was expected that
the end Of the long recess would be about
that time, and il vetoed it could be passed
over the veto. During the last hours of the
session the period Of the recess had to be
changed Senator Bradley suffers from hay
fever and always goes to Europe in Sep
tember to get rid of sneezing He expects
he will have the hay fever just as bad as
ever, and he must go away Without SEN
ator Bradley's vote the Republicans would
be helpless and as he could not pair off
with any Democrat. the recess had to be
prolonged until October, in the hope that
Senator Bradley would be better by that
time The date was changed hastily and
the clause in the Judiciary bill was forgot
ten and the provision makes it effective be-
fore it can be passed over the veto, should
that become necessary.
Attorney General Stockton's assistant
William Y johnson, holds to the belief that
the Governor can veto the holdover measures
at any time within thirty days Of the date of
adjournment. on the ground that the clause
of the Constitution which fixes the five-day
limit does not apply whSn the Legislature
takes a long recess. Mr.. johnson held that
under ordinary circumstances, while the
Legislature is in session. the Governor must
return a bill with his objections within the
prescribed time
ssBut," says Mr.. johnson, 'sif the House is
not in session, how can he do 500 When the
Legislature adjourns sine die, the Governor
can veto a bill at any time within thirty
days, and such veto kills the measure. Now
the claim is made that the Legislature can
next fall take up for reconsideration any
vetoed measures and pass them over thet
veto. Il there Is any validity In this claim,