The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-01-20
FOR THE BIG CITIES
REPRESENTATIVE OF MINNEAP.
OILS, ST. PAUL AND DULUTH
TALK JOINT LEGISLATION
PROVIDING SCHOOL FUNDS

I'm Addition to Other Sums-An-
City OficiaIs-What 1t Calls
For.
The Ramsey, Hennepin and st. Louis
county delegations from the senate
and house held a Joint session yester-
| day afternoon at the capitol. Bills
prepared by committees from the COM
! merc1al bodies Of the three cities We're
| presented, and considerable discussion
! followed the introduction of two meas
ures. one providing for an increase in
the school tax and the other regulating
and fixing the salaries of city officials.
The school bill was referred back to
committee, consisting of Senator
Baldwin, of Duluth; Walter Chaplin, of
st. Paul, and N. f. Hawley, a mem
Der of the Minneapolis school board
| for revision
The salary bill was read and, after a
brief discussion, was laid over until the
next meeting Of the delegations, which
will be held next Thursday afternoon
at o'clock, in committee room 16, at
the capitol At this meeting primary
election bills will be brought up and
| considered.
Senator Potter Rep), of Hennepin
was made chairman Of the session, and
Representative Dunn (Rep), of Ram
sey, secretary On motion of Senator
Horton (Rep), of Ramsey, the question
| of school funds was first taken up.
Gen. J. B. Sanborn, of the St Paul
! chamber of commerce, introduced Wal
| ter Chaplin, a local attorney, who had
| prepared a bill at the request Of the
committee. The measure, which was a
| general law, applicable to cities in the
! state of over $4,000 Inhabitants, pro-
| vides as follows:
| Section l. Cities now hereafter having
| over fifty thousand inhabitants are hereby
| empowered to raise annually by taxation, in
addition to other sums for school purposes
authorized by law, an amount not exceeding
! one mill the dollar of the assessed valu-
| alton of taxable property within such city for
the purchase of school sites and the erection
repair furnishing and fitting of public school
buildings and the general maintenance of the
| public schools within such city, and to ap-
propriate the same to such or any of such
uses;
Provided That such sum to the extent of
one-half mill on each dollar of valuation only.
| may be appropriated to general maintenance
and the remainder thereof shall be applicable
| to the erection, repair, furnishing and fitting
| Of school buildings and the acquisition of
! school sites. or one or more of such cases.
but shall be appropriated to no other purpose.
Sec. 2. This act shall take effect and be
| In force ON and after Its passage.
In answer to inquiries, Mr. Chapin
| SAID that maintenance in the act meant
| everything under the head of current
| expenses, except the purchase of sites
and erection of buildings
| Mr.. Hawley, member Of the Min
neapolis board Of education. desired to
have the act amended by the Insertion
! of the following proviso:
provided. however. that the rate tax
| alton levied by such boards OF education
taxation levied by such boards of education
! shall not in any year exceed the maximum
| rate OF taxation, fixed and determined for
| chat year by the board of tax levy If any.
of the county In which such city or district
| Is located for various purposes for which
] such board is authorized to levy taxes
Thls would be necessary, Mr. HaWley
| said, as in Minneapolis there was a
tax levy board. Gen. Sanborn ques-
toned whether it would be advisable
| as in st. Paul the board of education
mad not the power to make a tax levy.
and there was no tax levy board.
QUESTIONS ITS VALIDITY. e<q
Senator Sheehan (Rep). of Ramsey
raised the question of the constitu-
tionality of the proposed bill. The rate
OF taxation for schools in ST. Paul at
present was 21s mills; in Duluth 9
mills, and in Minneapolis mills The
act as drawn simply raised the tax
levy for schools 1 mill in each city,
| and, in his opinion, no general law
could be passed which would modify
a special law under the constitution,
as held by the supreme court in the
question of special legislation. A gen.
era1 law could be passed to levy a GER
tain mill tax, but it would have to be
uniform.
w. H. Cairns, of Minneapolis, repre-
| senting the chamber Of commerce Of
that city, took issue with senator Shee-
han on the point and claimed that the
| act was constitutional -
President Zimmerman, of the ST.
Paul board of education, said st. Paul
wanted at least 11a mills, Of which /
mill would be for maintenance.
senator McGin (Rep). of Ramsey.
| did not think l mill would be enough
for st. Paul. He advised that the ex-
penditure of the amount raised by the
1-mlll levy be left to the board of ed
ucation to be spent as it saw fit with
out the building or repair limitation.
! The board was composed of intelligent
and honest men, and it could be de-
pended upon to act wisely.
Gen. Sanburn said that there was
but one way to judge the future, and
that was by the past. The law under
| which st. Paul was working now pro-
vided for a 21A-mill levy, one-half a
mill of which was to be used for build
ing and repairs. Little if any of the
| halt-mlll levy was used for building
| UIQlCdClOn
as to the amount to be used for main
| tenance.
FAVORS A LIMITATION.
W. p. Murray, Of the legislative COM
mfttee from the ST. Paul chamber of
| commerce, agreed with Mr.. Sanborn
as to the limitations to be placed on the
amount for building purposes. He adj
m1tted the statements made by Mr.. Nc
Gill as to the ability and integrity of
the school board members, but he was
opposed to giving the board full power
as to the amount to be expended for
maintenance. The school board had
asked for two mills and then for an adj
ditional half-mill for building purposes.
| rms was agreed to and he drafted the
bill, but a flaw was found and instead
! Of the half-mill being used for build
Ing purposes it was carried to the
maintenance account
Senator McNamee (Dem), of Ram
sey, SAID he, as we'll as Senator McGill.
mad been members of the school board
and he knew that the ST. Paul school
board could not get along on a mill as
provided by the proposed bill He sug-
gested that the figures be made a mill
and a half
The members Of the Hennepin delega-
ton agreed to this, claiming that it
would suit them and do away with the
issuance of bonds.
Representative Dunn said he agreed
with Senator Sheehan that the propos-
ed bill was unconstitutional 1t was
not possible for the legislature to build
a suDerStructure on a foundation of
| special laws. The only way out was
to pass ageneral law providing for a
tax for each of the three Cities