Iowa state bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1894-1916, 1911-04-14
.AsSEMBLY|NREV|EN
The Thirty-Fourth General As
sembly Has Adjourned
HAS BEEN A RECORD BREAKER
About Eleven Hundred Bills Have
Been introduced During the
Session 612 In the House,
Remainder In Senate.


most eventful session in which many
records were broken and after bal
lotting sixty-seven times to elect q
United States senator and doing so
then at the last hours of adjourn
ment.
There were many important bills
before this august body, many of
which were killed. The more i'm.
portant bills to become laws of Iowa
are treated briefly below.
Political.
1t was record breaker In many
ways and will long be remembered
for the long political fight on senator
which lasted up to the hour of ad-
journment which elected w. S. Ken
yon on the sixty-seventh ballot 10
the United States senate to fill the
vacancy caused by the death Of the
Hon. ]. P. Dolliver. About eleven
hundred bills were offered, many OF
which were killed.
Financial.
The session just closed appropriat.
ed nearly two million dollars for state
use and for claims and indemnities.
By reason of the transfer OF the
auto tax from the general revenue
fund to the road fund and the trans
fer OF a portion of the hunters H.
cense fund, it may be necessary for
the executive council, when it makes
the next levy for the state to in
crease the tax levy a trihe. The
chairmen of the two appropriation
committees, Mates in the senate and
Moore in the house, may cut down
every appropriation to its limit State
institutions have received an in
crease in per capita allowances for
the inmates and these and other mat
ters may tend to an increase in the
tax levy. #
Taxation.
Taxation has had a hard row to
hoe during this legislature. The big
work done by the legislature along
this line has been the passing of two
important bills affecting taxation and
the killing or two bills on the same
subject. OF the tax bills passed 1t is
a toss UP whether the repeal of the
tax ferret law or the new monies
and credits bill is the more import
ant. Early in the session bill pro-
hibiting contracts with tax ferrets by
counties was passed. 1t does not af-
feet existing contracts. The monies
and credits bill provides for fiat
five mill limit on monies and credits.
Two important bills were killed.
One provided for the creation of a
permanent tax commission to take
over all work pertaining to, the levy
ing Of taxes in the state. The other
provided for legislative tax com.
mission to recommend to the next
general assembly a new system of
taxation for the state. The terminal
tax bill met it's usual fate and died
before it got well matured.
Educational.
Education has received proper and
considerable notice at the hands of
this legislature. Three, measures of
vital Importance affecting the educa-
tional interests of the state have
passed and gone to Governor Carroll
for his signature. The first of these
is the Shane bill providing for free
tuition in accredited high schools, to
the pupils in rural schools which do
not have high school facilities and
courses. The district pays the bill
The second of these is the Adams
bill, providing an appropriation of
$500 for one normal training course
in each county of the state, this
course to be part of the regular work
of one high school in each county
The third of the educational bills Is
that which provides for the valida-
ton for life of teachers certificates.
1t affects first, second and third grade
certificates. -
Good Roads Laws.
In the field of roads much has been
done and much has been killed. The
Cunningham compulsory dragging
law has been passed which means
much to the good roads movement
in Iowa. The Kulp auto tax bill
taking So per, cent of the taxes from
automobiles and putting them in the
good roads fund, is also a step to-
wards giving the state better roads.
The third of the good roads bills,
provides for a two-mill levy, by coun-
ty supervisors, for the creation Of a
county road fund to be spent by the
supervisors for good roads. Two I'M.
portant road bills were killed. The
Whitney bill, which completely re-
wrote the road, drag, bush weed and
hedge laws of the state, provided for
poll tax for good roads work and
school of instruction for good road
making, was killed. With it was kill.
ed the Fourt bill watch created the
office of state highway engineer, the
state highway board and provides for
state aid in building county good
roads. The Whitney bill also carried
with it convict labor on roads. All in
all eighteen bills affecting good roads
were introduced and of these three
have been passed.
Cities and Towns.
From the standpoint of municipali.
ties considerable good legislation has
been passed. This includes the mon.
les and credits tax and the fire mar
shall bills, considered elsewhere. The
most important bill outside of these
was that defining switching limits
within q city or town. It means
much to urban development.
Public Health.
The most important public health
measure passed is the Perkins unsex-
ing bill. This is also the most radi-
cal health measure adopted in Iowa
in years. 1t provides for an opera
ton known as vasectomy to he per-
formed on certain classes of inmates
in public institutions. 1t prevents
Contracts For Sale Of Land.
BY De Wolf of Grundy-Providing
that contracts for the sale of land.
when possession and legal title re-
mains with seller until ttnal settle
ment, shall not be construed as cred
go. fos. fho oE