The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-08-18
AN EXTRA
 SESSION Florida Assembly Will Meet Again. STATE IS SHORT OF FUNDS No New Furniture for the Executive
 Mansion. Discovery Has Been Made That None of the Special Appropriations
 by Legislature Can
 Be Paid.
BY J. H. REESE


 session of the Legislature will be called by the Governor upon his return from North Carolina where he has been spending a few weeks with his family. The discovery has been made and the announcement made in a semi-oficial way this week, that none of the special | appropriations made by the recent Leg | islature can be paid, because of the | fact that the tax levy and license taxes will not proauce sufficient revenue over l and above the current expenses of the | State to pay them
 Matters were brought to a focus when the Comptroller notified the Gov ernor that he would refuse to draw any | warrants for the payment of furniture 1 for the new mansion.
 The appropriation for finishing and | furnishing the mansion comes in the | category of those that cannot be paid,
 because they are extraordinary and do 1 not come under the head of regular or l ordinary expenses, and the Attorney l General has given an opinion that un- l der a law passed the last day of the | session that the current expenses of the l State must be paid or provided for be- l fore any of the appropriations are paid, l and this being tEe construction of the 1 law the Comptroller says there is noth- | ing to do but hold them all up, for | there will not be money enough to pay | them
 The situa :ions was anticipated by ! Governor Broward and he sent spe- | ciaI message to the Legislature two l days before the close of the session 1 calling attention to the condition which | would confront the administrative or ficers if proper action were not taken l by the Legislature. ~ 1 The Governor in his message said: II l find that from the license taxes and all other sources including the tax now | levied for the year 1906, from which | the general revenue of the State IS sup pIied the total amount which may be 1 expected to be collected by January l., 1 1909, Git is to be remembered that the 1 Legislature meets in Florida only once | in two years, hence all calcutatlonS | must be made for the bi-ennium), Will l be S1.4s2.6772S. The amount neces- | sary to maintain the State government | exclusive of special appropriations,
 will be $1,361,126. This would leave 1 apparently balance of $13l, ,5512S, ana | I would say that as that date IS put | few months before the convenlng or l the next Legislature in regular session l that the amount is not an excessive l one to be on hand for the payment of | the legislative expenses of the session, 'grhe special appropriations so Tar | made by the Legislature An excess or | these estimates are approxinately
 $l,2OO, 900, to be paid out of the gen | eraI revenue fund during the next two 1 wears As there will be in the general l fund no money by the first of July,
 1907. it 1t necessary that law be en- | acted for bidding the contract of any | debt by any board or department | handling or carrying out the purposes
 of appropriations until after such board l or department has been ohclaIIy no 1 tifed bv the Board of Commissioners | of State institutions that there is sur | fcient money in the treasury to the | credit of the general revenue funo 10 | carry out the proposed protect "
 will be necessary that you make a tax | levy that will produce sufhclent money | during the next two years to meet the
 special appropriation pills Pdsseu oS S | the Legislature, and as the taxes Whlch
 this Legislature will levy will not be-
 come available before another year. | tbe aboye recommendation to enact 1 Jaw protecting the State against oph-
 cations under appropriations untii tue l money is collected, is imperative.
 Though the Governor is on record
 .s noinfine out the trouble ahead, the | Tegtslature did not act in entire con | formity with his recommendations. A bill was passed in conformity With | that part of it which made 1t necessary for any board, official or commission to
 first apply to the Commissioners or state
 institutions to ascertain 1T the money
 would be payable upon demand put
 th.t mart of the message which re-
 ferred to the necessity for speclal
 tax levy to provide for the approprld-
 tions was evidently overlooked.
 "Complications have been brought
 about in consequence. 1he Ahuien War Claim Commission met, organized
 and adjourned for future tots lIeee,lS | the same happened to the Chlckaluiu l ca Monument Commission. the Board
 of Control. having direction of the col l Ieges at CainesVille and Tallahassee, 1 were preparing to let contracts TOT the l new buildings, the need for them pe-
 ing urgent, when they were coolIy ho l titled " the State Commissioners that
 t4 I,1o,,ia he impossible to realize the
 money on contracts made now. anu
 chatting payment at any time Tn the
 Oaor fI+ure The appropriation for
 the Governors mansion was necessa
 rily treated in the same manner. tne | Governor went to New York' anu u 10
 understood had selected the sreatei | mart of the furniture for the mansloh'
 PS,1 stto,, is now almost completed. when
 he had the Comptroller's notice that
 the money would not be available Tor
 the purchase. . . 1ba+ the lew of two mills for general revenue l is jpsuffieient and the Legislature ] i complete the task which was lelt ul | completed the last day Of the sessio" l when the other act was passed A,o | Aside from the financial matter theI
 ara other subjects which VIII heeu
 disposaI at the hands of the Legs
 lature, offering cause sufficient io'
 an extra session. .,-- ,o..,o
 The worl. If the Investigating com
 rnittee Is drawing to close, ana
 the entire State Is interested m tHe
 committee's report it will necessary | for the Legislature to meet recelse tbe mort and make disposal or It. ] If is thought too that if the GoVerno' | determines upon calling an extra ses-
 sion that he will also do all m ms
 power to have a constitutional aIhenu-
 ment making Florida prohioition
 state. The Governor is known 10 oe | the strongest advocate of prohibition
 and since the action of the Georgl Ia
 LeFfslature in voting whisky out ol
 that State @ prohibitionsts In Flortua !ua
 have tal heart and will make tle
 most of the opportunity to nave tne
 matter put before the people or @ the
 state. In Florida the Constitution
 fixes the law of local option hence
 it will be necessary to have the Soh
 stitution amended in order to put t1c t1c
 State in the prohibition. AireauS
 thirty-seven of the forty-six counties
 in the State are dry under local oPtio"
 tr Ra,,,,,,.. SSttttuQa