The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1905-03-09
Election Commissioner May
Hereafter Enjoy Himself.
No Longer Necessary to Register
Every Year.
CHARTER ACT STANDS.
Municipal League Let Its Laws
60 by Board.
The Term viii Continue to Be
30 Years.
CHARTER ACT STANDS.

A law was passed by the legislature
which will in all probability lead to
the abolition of the Office of election
commissioner in cities of the first
class. This is the position which at
Topeka is at present held by T. S.
Williams who is allowed, in addition
to his salary of $1,000 year, an as
sistant at salary Of 5000 a year.
The new law is IN regard to regis
tration in cities of the first class. 1t
provides that so long as a voter lives
at the same place, and votes at every
election. he viii not be required to re-
new his registration. If he moves, or
II he fails to vote at the elections, he
IS obliged to go to the commissioner
of elections Office and put his name
back on the books.
Such a law as this will it is esti-
mated. cut down the work Of the
commissioner of elections about so or
rs per cent Even as it is now. the
commissioner and his deputy have
nothing much to do for about ten
months out of every year. The office
is a sinecure. and the new law will
make it still more of a joke than it
has been il the past.
What should be done is to authorize
the city clerk to employ special cleo
ton clerks for a few months every
year. whose business it would be to
look after the registration. Such
clerks would be necessary only shortly
before each election. when the rush
of business is extra heavy. At that
time it would of course be necessary |
to hire a dozen or so extra clerks, as
IS usually done. but the city would |
save about $500 a year in salaries, |
which under the new law Will be 1
about the same as wasted.
The change in the registration law
is the one which is of especial interest
to cities of the first class. There was /
a great deal of new legislation needed, /
but through some mysterious reason
none of 1t was properly pushed and /
It all failed to get through
For example. there, was great need (
for an amendment to the old city I
charter act, in SO far as it relates to l
public utilities The present law I
allows cities to grant franchises for
3 years. and every municipal corpo-
ration has been taking advantage of
this law to get new franchise
For the city of Topeka it means that the
Edison company is practically certain to
The city held Il or Of this franchise with
the expectat ion that the city charter act
would be amended. and that law more
favorable to the city and less favorable
to the corporations would be enacted.
Strange to state, there was no strong
effort made to secure the passage of
law amending the present city charter
act The Kansas Municipal league.
which seems TO be organized chiefly for
the purpose OF giving an annual banquet.
went to sleep and did nothing Frank OIL
worth, introduced a bill which was pound
ed over by the committee on cities Of the
first class. and after a long delay finally
reported back &c the house. It was a good
bill, but it never got any further than
made to push it. All of the seeming de-
termination to secure better corporation
laws has ended so far this session is
w A. s Bird Of Shawnee. who was
chairman of the committee on cities of
blame. He says that neither the city at
torney OF Topeka. the mayor, or any Of
the passage of new laws on the subject
OF public utilities, and that he did not
care to push such law unless the cities
showed some desire for 1t.
Neither did the bill pass which was in
tended to enable the city of Topeka to
repave Kansas avenue This street is in
a horrible state of repair and a bill was
the right to repave a street whenever in
the Judgment of the city council it became
recessaTv- Tl1e law rsrains as If was
that a street can not be repaved until the
property owners petition for the repave-
ment. So it rests entirely with the bust
ness men on Kansas avenue and the peo-
PIE who own property on Kansas avenue
rs to how soon this much needed improve
ment will be made.
The bill providing for the requirement. of
to the senate. There it it was ssU EilIe led, The
claim is made that the proper effort was
not made by those who should have been
interested to save the bill Mr. Bird says
the bill could easily have been passed !
through the senate If anybody had tried
to push it.
Another bill of interest to the city of
Topeka which went to the races when
It reached the senate was the one chang |
ing the rate of interest on improvement
bonds. This bill was introduced for the
purpose of correcting a technical Difficult