The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-12-30
THE REFORM MEASURES
FINAL SESSION or THE COMMISSION
HELD YESTERDAY.
Three Legislative Bills Determined
On-COntrOI of Finances in Leg
isIatures.

When the final session of the Township and
County Reform Commission opened yester-
day morning the members listened to a
statement from William Fortune, chairman
of the executive committee, covering the
points of the work done by the various sub
committees in making the proposed bills
ready for the action of the commission. lie
said he had tried to simplify the work, and
while the committees had attempted 10 90
as much as possible in covering all the
points in which abuse is now practiced, they
had found many branches of legislation sug-
gested in which it would be impossible Tor
them to do much at present. While the COM
mittees had been unable to reach many
questions, they had settled on the funda-
mental principles of national, state ana
municipal government. In the case of the
township trustees it had been found that all
powers were united in one man. after the
Russian idea which is very repugnant to
Americans In him is combined the author
ity to levy taxes and collect them, to make
the appropriations and spend them, paying
himself whatever he chooses in the way OF
per diem. 1t had been shown to the COM
mittees that out of this system had grown
the general dissatisfaction which led to the
formation of the commission
AS an indication of how far wrong the
present system is, Chairman Fortune said
that the statistics compiled by the commits
SIGN showed that the proportionate cost or
township government was eight times as
great as that of the state government, to
say nothing Of county government, whose
relative cost is felt to be as large probably
as the township figures. While the state
government has been the subject of care
full and beneficial legislation, the coun-
ty and township government had been
sadly neglected. The commission began
it's work in the belief that the Ameri-
can principles of government should be
introduced into township and county gov
eminent and that a legislative body shall
be created to represent the people, whose
duty it shall be to levy the taxes and make
the appropriations.
The commission believes that the trustee
is properly an executive officer, and under
the proposed bills will exercise only such
functions He will continue to spend the
of the appropriations. The committees hav-
ing the matter in charge believe that, as the
whole scheme contemplated placing the tax
levying and approprfating power in the
hands of the people, the present bill COW
cred the ground as completely as any scheme
which could be devised. 1t simply meant
the introduction of the legislative plan of
government into local affairs. Early in It's
work the commission found that it was not
of reform government, such as school legis-
lation, for the reason that the reforms pro-
IN e boF ec dae Rs Tl Sf 20 Of
do much of that sort of work without special
legislation.
THREE LEGISLATIVE PLANS.
In view of this condition of affairs the eX-
ecutive committee simply reported to the
commission three plans for legislation on as
many subjects. One related to township
government and one to county government,
and each of them was based on the prin-
ciple of legislative control of local finances.
The third bill was one requiring county and
township officers to keep their financial ac-
counts in uniform manner, the form to be
determined by the state auditor. Under the
bill they shall be required to file reports,
which are to pe examined by state ex-
aminer, to be appointed, and whose duty it
shall be to seek out Illegal expenditures. In
addition the commission had before it a bill
poor relief. UPS
Mr. Fortune reported that the commission
had not been able to reach the question of
reforms in the matter of public roads in the
time allowed it for the consideration of re-
form problems, and the executive committee
recommended that it be left in the hands of
the legislative committee.
The only changes made in the original bills
as presented to the committees for revision
and suggestion were that the township bill
was altered to require trustees at the same
time they reported estimates for expend-
lures 10 fle with the township board an in
ventory of all township property of every
description in their possession. Regarding
that portion of the township bill placing
trustees under salary, Mr. Williams asked
that the minimum Of 500 be raised to 5000
and the maximum of $1,000 remain I'M
changed. With these exceptions the entire
bill was adopted
The county bill, which consists of from
sixty to seventy sections adopted with
out change being made, was the case
with the poor bill
TIME TO RI EHFFEsCyrTVE
After the approval of the bills discus
sion arose over the question of when it was
considered best to have the bills take eff
feet, there being a doubt as to whether the
first officials to administer the new law
should do so in 1900, or whether officers
should be appointed for a temporary term
covering the period of 1899 and up to the time
when officers would be elected at a general
election. 1t was argued that If appointiVe
officers had the first administration of the
law, there would be opportunities presented
by which the bill could be crippled in its
effects, while if there should be no officers
appointed until the election of 1900 the law
would not go into effect until 1902. The COM
misSoners all expressed the wish to see
the law in operation as soon as possible and
1t was finally decided to leave the matter TO
the executive committee, which will choose
the best time After approving the bills for
county poor relief and for uniform accounts
and state examination of county and town
snip aHairs, 1t was agreed to leave all the
bllls IN the hands of the executive commit
tee for presentation to the Legislature and
there will be no further meeting of the COM
mission unless under a special CALL