The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1908-05-23
(0DE mission
ATTORNEY HAS PLAN
PASSING ON PROPOSED
LAWS.
.,dment to State Constitution
Necessary Under His P'a"-s'"''ar
IN ,,.roduced Several Years Ago
,,.,,d Have New Commission Also
Prepare New State Code.

till Nav 13.-The Postlntelli-
81 nnblishes the following:
GEM, ormanent commission to pass
tba constitutionality of proposed
upon ,o+ive enactments, instead of the
iesio .i+ntional amendment providing
coH'. tho supreme court shall be clothed
thas ucb mower, is advocated by
D;cbard SAKE Jones.
., great many years ago prepared
In 70 create such a commission"
~ Mr. tones, land sent it to the jul
s ,oaiarv committee of theslegislature,
ui'' sonting it through the medium of
uon Harold Preston, who was
'n member of the legislature. That
IN &c | drew it, contained a pro-
Di,i' which would not require any
'mondment to the constitution.
IF provided for the appointment by
-, Governor and ratification by the
,nrisIature of three permanent code
COMMISSIONERS, whose terms OF office
,bould be during good behavior.
IT provided for large salary, and
.bo salary should be larger than that
Of the iudges of the supreme court, be-
oousa the duties would be more ardu-
ono and would compel lawyer to give
IN any idea of practicing law.
Provisions of Bill.
ut provided that these commission
Drs should be constantly in session
and that their first duty should be to
revise the codes of the state of Wash
ington and provide for a permanent
code, to be adopted as such by the leg
stature, thus doing away with all the
conflicting acts which are now grated
upon the laws of our state, and max
ing only one act for each subject
MY bill provided further that after
a permanent code had been adopted,
then no new act should be passed by
the legislature until it had been re-
ferred to this permanent code commits
sion or as it might be called, perma-
nent judiciary committee.
IF the code commission found that
the act had nothing to do with con-
stitutional questions or questions at
fecting the permanent code which had
already been adopted, then the code
commission would Immediately return
it with such a notation. If, however,
the code commission found good and
sufficient reason to advise against the
passage of the act, then it was the
duty of the code commission to return
the act with the reasons, in writing,
for rejecting the same, or with such
amendments as would make it conform
to the constitution and the permanent
code which had been adopted.
The bill further provided that mem
bers of the legislature might send bills
which they might intend to introduce
to the code commission at any time,
whether the legislature was in session
or not and the code commission was
required to return the same, with its
comments, within a limited period to
be fixed by the act.
To Prevent Hurried Legislation.
The act further provided that nc
Dill should be passed by the legislature
Which had not been submitted to the
code commission at least ten days be
lore the adjournment of the legisla.
lare thus preventing hurried legisla
uon at the last few days of the ses
sion
do not contend that the bill drawn
ny ME was perfect, but my idea was
70 get before the legislature just what
is now suggested, only in a more per
nanent form. In my judgment, il
uese three code commissioners were
~" doing business, we could dispense
WIN two judges of the supreme court
ine preliminary expense might be 8
mule more, but the saving to the PEG
PIE IN litigation would much more thar
compensate for the salaries paid.
Easy to Prepare New Bill.
nave not before me a copy of the
plii which drew and submitted to the
lion' Harold Preston, as it has beer
ba'heu away with old papers in boxes
~ une garnet, but it would be little OF
Nv trouble to prepare a new bill o.
IiS hlnd If the newspapers of The
Sso,e VIII agitate the appointment o.
u'n commission, so that the public
rlllu can be educated to it before the
.At session of the legislature. woul(
siadly give the time to such prepare
sOn II | believed there was any chanct
.Oi the establishment of such a com
mission.
=. say that there would be no neces
s Vi constitutional amendment be
Use mere would be no delegation o
sisia'lve authority whatever, thu
NIUE commission being simply com
'tee to recommend, without author
fs 10 compel legislation. would no
sa'or constitutional amendment, no
an act of the legislature which tool
Nv "as from the legislature its full pow
m,a ~ act, for by giving to code com
co aSsion any legislative authority i
t;ouy to the spirit of our institu
viii wis The people should govern an,
ba i govern, and no committee shout,
t Hase authority to legislate for us, al
couE 1t is unfortunately true tina
ID -