The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-06-28

Section 5 Is changed so as to provide for quadrennial, instead of biennial sessions of the Legislature. In view Of the prohibitions to be placed on the Legislative power to pass local laws there will be hereafter neither . de- mand nor a necessity for biennial ses- sions. The change is recommended on the additional grounds that it will pre- vent hasty and. ill-advised attempts to repeal general laws before they have been long enough in force to admit Of fair test of their merits, and it will also conduce. by removing early op- portpnity for repeal, to mature and careful deifberatiOn by the Legislature. The tendency to permanency of the fe- gislstige enactments will be greatly in creased and much expense say ad 70 the State.
 Section 8 is amended so as to add to 1 its present requirements, that the House. as well as the Senate, shah elect one of it's members Speaker at such times, other than the beginning Of the session as may be necessary; and further, than in case of temporary dis ability of either presiding officer. the House to which he belongs may elect, from among its members a temporary presiding officer to take the place of the regular one during the iatter's disabil- ity. and tD receive during such time only the compensation to which the permanent officer fs entitled. Section g Of the present article, ex- cept the portion transferred to Section 3 as hereinbefore indicated, is omitted from the new article.
 To prevent lobbying, Section IS is amended so as to confine the privileges of the floor of either or both Houses to members of the Legislature. officers | and employees of each House, the Gov ernor and his secretaries. representa- tives of the press and such other per sons as to whom either House by un- animous vote. may extend the privi- leges of its floor.
 Section IF of the new article, all offi- cers. military as wen as civil. are in- l cluded in the prohibition against ap- 1 pointment Of Senators and Representa-. tives. during the term for which they | were elected. to an office created or re-
 ceiving added emoluments during such term
 To Section 20 are added the require- | ments that the reference of bills there | in provided for must be to a standing committee of each House, that the ac- | ton of such committees thereon must be had in session. and that the facts of reference. actiop in session, and re- turn must afirmatively appear on the | Journal Of each House.
 For Section 9. the committee reports substitute. embodying the require | ments of the present section, and ex- | tending them to all amendments in either house. with the added require. ment that every amendment must be entered at length on the Journal Of the
 House in which the same is adopted. The matters embraced in Sections 23 and "A are fully covered by the report fHRsN 1 and the report supplementary thereto heretofore made by this committee.
 To Section 27 are added the require | ments that immediately before being signed by the respective presiding offl-
 cers, every bill shall be read at length
 and the fact of such reading and sign Ing entered on the Journals. but that
 the reading may be dispensed with by two-thirus of a quorum present, which shall be entered on the Journal The operation of Section 9S is enIarg- municipality from increasing .he pay of
 offtcers. employees or contractors, after | service rendered or contract made. To Section S1, relating to the origin | of revenue bills, is added a reduire- ment that at the beginning of each regular session the Governor Auditor, Treasurer and Attorney General shall
 have prepared a general revenue bill,
 to be printed by the Secretary of State
 and by the Governor laid before the House as soon as organized. This is
 deemed advisable in aid of the Legis- Iature. A prohibition Is added that no
 revenue bill Is to be passed during the
 last five days of the session, the ob-
 Ject being to avoid hasty IegisiatIon on
 matters of such moment, and allow the
 Governor ample time to consider such bills.
 By the amendation of Section @. no
 salary IS to be increased by the gener-
 al appropriation bill, and no appropria-
 tion made for any officer or employe.
 unless his employment and the amount
 of his salary have already been pro-
 vided for by law.
 To Section g is added a provision that by two-thirds vote of each House
 the Legislature, when convened in ex-
 tra session. may legislate upon subjects
 other than those designated in the call
 ing proclamation of the Governor.
 To the existing provisions of Section
 42 are added Amendments which make
 the offense of corrupt solicitation of
 members of the Legislature and other
 officers therein designated, punIsha ble l py imprisonment in the penitentiary.
 and which require the Legislature to l provide
 l D For the trial and punishment of these and like offenses, and (2) for the
 same to be given in charge to the
 Grand Juries in all the counties of inc
 State
 Section 46 is changed in conformity
 to less frequent sessions of the Legfs- l lature. so as to require a qualification
 of the statutes following that next after ratification of this instrument
 once every twelve instead of ten years. By addition to Section 49 1t is made
 the duty of the Legislature to require
 the several counties to make adequate
 provisions for indigent idiots and in l sane persons.
 1 From Section 52 the committee has
 struck out the prohibition against the
 power to tax property of agricultural or horticultural associations, so as to l allow the Legislature to Impose a tax
 upon such property. This section is | further changed so as to confine the
 prohibition against taxing chool prop
 erty to that of public schools.
 The prohibitions of Section 54 are
 modified to the extent of permitting
 the State to construct and own a rail-
 road within it's borders This may be-
 come necessary to relieve the people
 from trusts or monopolies. or from
 unreasonable exactiors on freights and passengers
 Your Committee recommend a num-
 ber of new sections which are restric-
 tive on legislative power, namely:
 Against enacting laws for one or
 more counties. not applicable to all | counties in the State, regulating costs