Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1914-08-02

urge a more general adoption of the
county road bonding plan.
Many of the requests made upon
the state highway commission for CO.
operation in road building are for
the building of roads largely local In
character. The commission has. |
believe, adopted the policy-in which
believe 1t is absolutely right--of de-
voting the very limited state road
funds largely To the building OF those
links i'm state roads which would not
be built by local authorities. on ac-
count Of sparse population or limited
local usage | maintain that If a
county desires to build link IN q
state road which largely serves the
local needs Of such county, the ra-
tional method OF financing the con-
stfuction of such road or part there
of is for the county to bond itself
Roads can only be built properly
from funds of large size. No one
would think of building 10000
house at the rate of 81 600 a year,
and experience shows that permanent
road construction work Is seldom ac-
complished from tax levy funds.
Then, too, the road building plan dis
tributes the burden of cost more
evenly during the coming years 10
those who use the road. Do you
know that over { per cent of all the
counties in the United States have
bonded themselves for road purposes
why it is that in New Mexico only
one county out Of the twenty six
less than per cent--has bonded it.
self? The county road bonding law
of 1912 provides a method for the is
suance of county road bonds that is
simple, direct and effective. At least
twenty out Of our twenty-six counties
are in such financial condition that
under our constitutional limitation
they can issue road bonds.
State Aid Law.
Thirdly, sooner or later, | am con-
WINGED that our state will have to
adopt a state aid law. The best
thought throughout our country on
road financing and administrative
plans favors the adoption of a state
| aid law. under which state roads are
built comparatively from state Ano
4 county funds under definitely speci-
fled division of cost. The plan is
right in theory and it is eminently ef-
fective in practice. State roads
should not, In justice to their loca
value. be built entirely by the state
and few of our counties are ricf
enough to build more than their
purely county highways State roads
built and maintained by the state
under q cooperative plan whereby
both state and counties bear the ex-
pense, VIII sooner or later he con
structed in this state. Before sucf
a plan can be seriously considered
a much larger state road fund mus
be provided a fund of sufficient size
to meet the demands from the many
counties in our state that would TAKE
advantage of a state aid law.
Needed Legislation.
Lastly, | submit for your consid
Grafton what | believe to be the mos
important work before this conven
ton: thoughtful discussion and {
definite decision upon the report %
our legislative committee. This com
mittee has had under its most careful
consideration proposed changes IL
our road laws. our present roat
laws. chiefly those affecting count!
administration, are scattered over thu
acts of many LEGISLATURES. and, a
many of us know are conflicting, in
: definite and the cause of ineffective
and inharmonious conditions. Thi
matter of revising our road laws i
one that calls for unselfish. broad
minded thought. We must see to /
that these laws forever prevent, !
possible. the taint OF politics in oul
road administration; that they guar'
against those abuses in the admins
Itration of road funds that in some o
our counties have left "a black ant
: discreditable record. and that on
| road funds be expended. just so fa
!, las possible. under the direction an'