The silver state. [volume] (Winnemucca, Nev.) 1909-1925, 1912-03-05
ODD|E BLAMFS
THE LEGISLATURE

which confronts the people of Neva-
da. Time will speedily tell whether L
am right or the opponents of my ad-
ministration.
"In my message to the special ses-
sion of the legislature ! made it clear
that more than the borrowing of a
sum to tide over the present deficit in
the general fund was required for the
business of the state That the fu-
ture must be looked out for else we
could anticipate a situation which
would be beyond legislative remedy
without involving embarrassment to
every state institution.
81 showed that the general fund for
three years had been running behind
over $l50,000 per year, why it was
running behind, and what steps must
be taken to get the state back on a
sound business basis. The senate met
my showing by rushing through a bill
decreasing, instead of increasing, the
general fund-a direct issue with my
recommendation. 1t was finally
amended by the assembly leaving the
general fund unchanged as against the
showing ! presented that the general
fund must be increased from 1916 cents
to at least 80 cents on each one hun
dred dollars valuation of taxable prop
erty.
"In a letter to the ways and means
committee, | showed how. without in
creasing the state tax rate, but by
funding the present outstanding in
debtedness into a new state loan and
general fund TO a normal basis and
providing ways and means for an ex-
hibit at the Pan-Pacifc exposition,
merely for the interest on a loan, and
not until 1915 beginning the redemp-
tion of the principal; that AZ cents of
the cents now applied to the inter
est and redemption of the old and new
loan could be added to the general
fund and become a part of the in
crease required.
81 make no pretense of infallibili-
ty. Possibly my contention is incor-
rect that the state is already in sight
of breakers ahead Possibly the leg
islature. in its wisdom, on the other
hand is correct and that there are no
embarrassments in store for u.s. Time
will speedily tell.
eff, when another year comes about
the condition of the general fund is
such that injurious retrenehment has
to be resorted 10, affecting every state
institution as well as every state Office
and commission, even after exercising
our borrowing power up TO the $780,
600 limit, beg the people of Nevada
to believe that the resonsibility does
net rest upon myself.
"The reform of the state taxation
system, which | proposed, met with
like fate; certain members succeeding,
in its two presentations, in getting
themselves recorded on both sides of
it, Possibly the bin is a joke; but
believe the taxpayers of Nevada will
not find it so when they give it study.
81 showed in my message that the
receipts of the general fund, as com
pared with disbursements, were run
ming behind over S150,000 January !,
1909, when the state tax rate was 75
cents, when the secretary of state $
Office was turning into our revenues
over 100000 per year as against less
than $4,000 now and when there was
10000 of poll tax receipts coming in
to it as against none now.
After treating the remedies pro
posed bv me as joke, the legisla-
ture pronosed its remedy-Retreneh
mcntl 1t was proposed to restore the
$l50,000 deficit in the general fund
" eliminating the commission of in
arstry, agriculture and irrigation.
This commission abolished would save
the ship. II did not seem to occur to
the advocates of special retrenchment
that the trouble was somewhat larger
than the saving that would be effected
Nv abohshing the aforementioned
commission, together with the aboli
ton of the state police, the railroad
AMI public service commission, the
s'a'e engineer Office, the state bank
ing board and bank examiner, the
" l'cn tax eolector-all these would
hut half meet itl--the sacrifice would
have to have been extended to every
state office and all public institutions
curtailed.
"'n my inaugural massage of Janu-
A. =, 1911. | stated:
recommend that a joint com
Mite of the two houses be appointed
'r~estigate the ways and means of
rcdne'"g state expenditures and to
rp"rt by bill all reductions which can
- eHneted without impairment of the
pGl lie service
No attention was paid to this at
the regular session, but ut the special
session after treating nv earnest rec
concentrations as a Joke and every
measure presented from standpoints
more or less distinct from that Of the
public welfare, | could see no good
to come from opening up a subject to
the consideration of legislature and
prolong the session which it had dem
onstrated its incapacity to consider
dispassionately.
''With the several state loans fund
ed as | had suggested and merely the
interest provided for during the next
three years, and with the taxation sys-
tenn reformed as proposed by the bill
introduced bv Mr.. Merritt, a state tax
rate of 66 cents, would have enabled
the rate applying to the general fund
to have been increased by 10 cents on
each hundred dollars valuation. More
over, in my judgment, this would have
been temporarily increased and would