Tensas gazette. [volume] (St. Joseph, La.) 1886-current, 1914-12-04
PREVENT CARELESS LEGISLATION.

IcBdTul0B tHc CdfcicSS LldIucT III
which acts of the General Assembly
are framed and passed, and the Gen.
eral Assembly often severely critis-
lied when some act passed by it is
found to be fatally defective. or a
constitutional amendment proposed
by it has to be tested in the Courts,
on account of some real or apparent
defect, so as to have its validity de-
termined by the highest judicial au-
thority in the State. Among the
amendments to the Constitution
just voted on, No. A., permitting
the School Board of the City of New
Orleans to issue bonds to the extent
of $4,000, 900 has been found to be
defective and already a case is being
made up 80 as to test is validity in
the courts. All such errors cause
serious criticism to be leveled at the
members of the General Assembly,
and they are accused of carelessness
in the manner in which they pass
acts. At the regular session of our
Legislature there are introduced in
both House and Senate some six or
eight hundred bills, at the session of
1914 there having been just $40 in
troduced in both branches. Fixing
the number of bills introduced at
say 600 per session, this would make
it necessary for each member of the
Legislature to read and digest at
least an average of ten proposed acts
during each day. Now when you
consider that members, who do their
full duty, in addition to attending
the regular sessions Of their respect
i've Houses, have to attend from three
to five committee meetings per day,
it will be readily seen that it is
practically physically and mentally
impossible for them to read and d.
gest as many as ten proposed acts
per day, especially as some of them
are extremely long. As matter of
fact there are not enough hours in
the day for members Of the Legisla-
ture to accomplish any such task. !
1t therefore appears to US that some
change in our method of legislation
should be found that would make it
possible for the General Assembly to
have more time in which to read
and digest the proposed laws, but
we do not think that this could be
accomplished by increasing the
the length of the session.
Several suggestions have been made,
several plans proposed, but of them
all, we favor the plan proposed by
Senator Clinton, during the session
Of 1914 to divide the session of the
Legislature into two terms. The plan
proposed by him, is to have ses-
sion Of say forty days burning which
all acts would be introduced and re-
ferred to the proper committees, but
no act to be finally passed except
upon subjects brought to the atten-
tention Of the Legislature in a spec
ial message from the Governor or
appropriation bills, then the Legisla-
ture would adjourn for about six
months and meet for a session of
not more than forty days, during
the first ten days of which all COM
mittees shall report back to their re-
spective branches the bills referred
to them at the first session, and no
new bills to be introduced at the
second term except on such matters
a. might be suggested by the Cover
nor in special message or appro-
priation bills. After the adjourn
ment Of the first term, all bills in
troduced are to be printed and sent
to all State, District and Parish Of
ficers and to each newspaper pub
lished in the State. The result of
such a scheme of legislation would
be that not only the members of the
General Assembly. but also the peo-
pie OF the entire State, would have
an opportunity to carefully read, dis
cuss and digest every proposed law;
suggestions and amendments could
be freely offered, fatal or minor de-
fects discovered and corrections
made. There would he fewer cases
OF acts of the General Assembly be-
ing declared unconstitutional, and 4
an act once passed would reflect the
real intent OF the Legislature.
The above plan, briefly outlined, Il
was introduced by Senator Clinton
~ an amendment to the Constitu-
lion during the last session of the
legislature, and after passing the
Senate by a large majority was de-
Gated during the last two or three
lays OF the session in the House.
We believe this proposed plan, or
along the lines therein
would give us the most
,erfect system of legislation to be
ound anywhere, and would certain
y put an end to useless and frivil- /,
'us legislation, and to legislation so ,
aulty in construction that it some ,
lines takes years for the Courts to !
ell just what was the legislative in ]
ant