The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1913-01-07
A LEGISLATIVE BASIS.

! II Is falr 10 presume that 'ue nie"i
bers of the legislature which is to
meet next Monday will be prepared at
some time during the session to carry
out their sworn duty of reapportion'
ing the State into Legislative districts.
We arc now represented upon the CEN
sus Of 1890. a census twenty-threc
years old. which, Of course, does great
injustice TO many portions of the state,
and denies representation 10 those en-
titled thereto.
4 little investigation OF the question
of reapportionmcnt as applied TO the
lower House of the Legislature might
be useful as n preliminary study, and
we will consider il herein in several
phases.
The Constitution provides that every
county shall have at least one Repre-
sentative in the Lower House OF the
Legislature If this wero carried out
literally and every county were given
one member, for its entity as a
county. there would be twenty
seven Representatives ont of the total
OF forty-five who would be representa-.
tives Of the county. as such. That would
leave eighteen members to be. appor-
toned on population. But four counties
would be entitled on that basis to more
than one member; Cache, Salt Lake,
Utah, and Weber. Tho Representative
ratio would be in round numbers IA
0GQ. Sanpete county with l6,10l
population, would have but one Repre-
sentative; Cache county would have
two; Utah county would have three;
Weber county would have but two,
and Salt Lake county would have ten;
the contest for the odd member as be-
tween Weber and Salt Lake being on
the point whether Weber should
have three and Salt Lake nine, or
Weber two or Salt Lake ten. The
majority fraction would be with Salt
Lake. giving Salt Lake ten and leav-
ing Weber but two members. Evident"
ly, however, an apportioDmept like this
would be unsatisfactory to everybody.
It would deprive the people Of their
lust representation and would be too
rigid an application of the Constitu-
tional rule. The only relief would be
in considerable increase in the num-
Der OF Representatives We do not sup.
pose that any one IN the State would
favor this rigid application OF the Con-
stitutional rule. retaining at the same
time the present total membership Of
forty-fve.
Another proposition, based on the
membership of forty6ve, would give
twenty-five counties one member each,
leaving five counties to supply twenty
three members. Those FIVE counties
would be Cache county, with 23,062
population, two members; Salt Lake
county, l31 d26 population, eleven mem
bers; Sanpete county, with l6.7o1 popu-
lation, two members; Utah county,
with 81, ,942 population, four members;
Weber county, with 35,179 population,
four members. That would make up
tho forty-6ve This also seems to DO
unsatisfactory, in that it does not give
close enough representation to the peo'
pie. There ought to be moro members,
and the people should be better repre-
sented In the Lower House OF the
Legislature.
To remedy this. we would propose
an increase In tho membership of the
Lower House Of the Utah Legislature
corresponding to the increase in popula
tion. Wo are now working, on the
Legislative basis, on tho population
shown by the Federal census of 1890.
At that time the population OF the
State was 2l0,779. At the census of
1910 the population was G73 ,35l. If
we should allow an increase in the mem
bership Of tho Lower House correspond
ing TO the increase IN population since
1890, the present basis of represents
tion, that House would consist Of
seventy-fve members; and applying
that number 70 find the unit of repre-
sentation we find very satisfac-
tory method of apportiming the State
for Representatives The unit OF rep
resentatiou in that case would as near
ly as possible be 5000 population.
On that basis these counties would
have each one member; Beaver, 4717
population; Emery. .6I5o: Garfield,
$500; Grand, 1875; Iron, 1888; Kane,
1862: Millard. 6llS; Morgan, 2467;
Piute, 1884; Rich. 1889; San Juan,
9377; Uintah, 1850; Washington, 5l20;
Wayne, l749; fourteen counties, with
fourteen Representatives None of
these counties has ajor fraction over
the 1000 ratio.
The other counties on this basis
would have representation with popu-
| latiou as follows: Box Elder. 1884
! three members; Cache. 23.062. five
members; Carbon, 1924, two members;
Davis. l0,l9I. two members; Juab, TO-
702. two members; Salt Lake, l3l ,426
twenty-onc members; Sanpete, 1904
three members, Sewer, 977j, two mem