The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1908-12-14
FOR BETTER LEGISLATION.


One of the pet plans which has
prevailed for some time in the mind
of Mr. Stubbs, the elect. is
for the creation of a legislative library
or reference bureau under the charge
of persons competent to help members
of the legislature draft their measures
so that they will hold water in the
courts, and also to provide easily fac
ilities in the way of reference books
and other machinery for some of the
legislators who are quite capable of
drafting their own legislation. The
proposition is an exceptionally good
one and will undoubtedly be recon-
mended by Mr.. Stubs in his message
to the legislature. 1t should receive
the favorable consideration of the leg
islators. A bureau of legislative refer
ence of this sort is now maintained
by the state of Wisconsin and has
been found to work we'll there. There
is talk now of presenting a measure of
the same sort to the next Illinois leg
islature as soon as it convenes.
Some exceedingly pertinent things
on the subject are contained in an
editorial in a recent issue of the Chi
cago News which says: zone great
grade of legislators and more efficient
legislative work The legislators are
paid small salaries, yet they are ex-
pected without expert assistance to
frame bills that will pass the scrutiny
of the courts and fit smoothly into our
complicated economic system. 1t is
no wonder that the quality of our leg
isIative work has been poor. Each
state legislature needs the assistance
of capable experts and complete and
well-classified library of reference
containing information of value to
lawmakers, especially the laws of 9TH
er communities and the effects pro-
duced by those laws
AS the News points out one of the
drawbacks of the plan is that it will
not be of much benefit to the coming
Illinois legislature as it can hardly be
put in operation before the legislature
adjourns, If the measure creating 1t
received the most prompt and favor
able attention. This is also true of
any similar effort that might be made
along these lines by the approaching
Kansas legislature. But the News
points out a way, however, by which
the celebrating feature of the plan
might be put into operation in a mod
flied form in time to be of benefit to
the next legislature.
1t suggests that the judiciary COM
mittee of each branch of the legislature
the house and the senate-might be
authorized to employ one or more
good lawyers to assist in scrutinizing G
pending measures and in drafting
bills. In this way the legislature would
get part of the expert help of which it
stands in such great need. The ex-
perience gained in this manner doubt
less would be of benefit to the legisla-
tors when they undertook to make
provision by law for a permanent bu-
reau for the gathering of information
and the drafting of the bills.
OF course the members of judiciary
committees are generally all lawyers
and many of them on these commit
ties in the Kansas legislature are quite
as capable as other lawyers to draft
bills as near perfect in their details as
it is possible to make them. But the
point Is that the members of this
committee have not the time to scru-
tinize the great mass of legislation
that falls into their hands in the way
it should be unless they neglect their
| other legislative duties which are ex-
ceedingly numerous.