The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1913-05-01
FOLLOW MINNESOTA STATUTE
Proposed Law Would Give Commissions
for Counties Similar to Those Recon-
mended for the Government of Cities
Legislators Favor the Plan.

| Efforts will be made to incorpor-
and Judson-Hall bills for commission
government for counties into one bill
before the measure again comes up on
the floor of the assembly. In yester-
days long debate on this proposed
change, considerable friendliness to it
was shown by others than the authors
of the bills contingent on the ADJUST
ment of various provisions to suit the
majority. The bills were referred to
the judiciary committee largely to get
| the viewpoint of body heretofore not
officially interested in the plan, as they
came from the state affairs committee
without recommendation, the COM
mittee being evenly divided.
| Assemblyman Peavey's presentation
of the subject showed a careful study
of the whole history of county govern
ment. He had digested all the data
upon it in the legislative reference IL
rary, and had prepared charts to af-
ford a comparative review of the work
of county boards of both large and
small personnel. Invariably, he said,
the advantage was with the latter.
The work of county boards is largely
administrative, he said, and can be done
by body of few men with dispatch
and intelligent treatment.
Both Messrs. Peavey and Hall laid
stress on the optional features of their
bills, because of which no counties
need be prejudiced by outside powers.
Both provide for the election Of com
missioners on population basis, the
county being divided into different
| districts.
| The advantage uppermost in the
commission plan, according to NJ. Pea
vey, is the concentration of response
bility in few hands. This had been
| demonstrated, he declared, in Milwau-
kee, with board reduced to nineteen
members. He cited experience with
smaller bodies in Minnesota, Illinois,
Iowa, Michigan and California. In
Minnesota in particular, of which he
spoke from knowledge as a former
long resident of that state, vast
saving in county expense had been
made by reduced representation. One
method of retrenchment was the cut
| ting out of fees for special committee
work. Taxes in this state are high,
| he declared, not so much because state
taxes are high, but because county
taxes and expenditures are inordinate-
| ly large.
| Mr.. Peavey studied the tax commits
SONS reports from thirty-seven Wis
consin counties, and after comparing
them with Minnesota counties he felt
justified in foreseeing a saving in
those counties of upwards of $125,000
year.
The principal argument in favor of
the present system, he continued, was
the fact that 1T is representative Of
| the whole county, all local units hav-
| ing their members on the board. But,
he added, 1--WE are paying dearly for
this form of democracy" He knew
Of towns electing supervisors who had
never handled more than 800 or 5000
in their life, but in the lack Of any
better men send these representatives
to govern their county. On the other
hand, he said, he knew several coun-
ties which are well governed by rea-
son of the membership in the board
of a few public-spirited, sensible
business men.
"Why not elect these few men, and
them alonego asked Mr.. Peavey.
"Why burden them with lot of in
competents who get their jobs through
political work only? Why not put the
government Of the county in the
hands of these few big men to center
the responsibility on them alone?
There is waste, carelessness and in
efficiency in our present county board
government. We need simpler,
more efficient system. =
! Judson Hall believed his bill was
preferable, and debated it at some
length Assemblynan Dolan express
ed sympathy with the new plan, but
liked certain features in the Peavey
bill over similar clauses in the Hall
bill, and other sections in the Hall
bill better than those in Peavey's.
1t was t1is situation which led to the
! reference of both bills to the judiciary
committee, which is expected to re-
port a substitute bill embodying the
best features of each.
4 LIZ,