The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1915-03-25
SECOND GREATEST
COST IN HISTORY
1915 Session of Legislature
Will Be 100000.
Only Once Has Expense Ex-
ceeded This Amount.
LARGEST LIST EMPLOYEES
Agitation for Efficiency and
Economy Useless.
Sixty-E Eight Days of Work and
Pay for Clerks.
-ARGEST LIST EMPLOYEES

When the printing expense of the
state legislature is determined, it is
probable that the 1915 session will
have cost the state 100000, the sec
ond most expensive session in the his
tory of Kansas. Independent of the
expense of printing bills, session laws
and expense of members who visited
state institutions, the expense of the
session has amounted to $S6, ,633.S6.
Only once in the history of the state
has the expense of Kansas legisia-
ture eQualled or exceeded that OF the
1915 lawmakers. In 1903-the year
of the big scandal over excessive en-
ployee's hStS-the session cost the
state $4,000 independent of printing
and stationery cost. The session just
ended has cost more money than any
subsequent legislature. 1t also car
ried the largest list of mployees-re-
gardleSS of the agitation for economy
and efficiency.
The expense for legislative en-
ployees this year reached q grand to-
tai of $43,046.50 in the house and sem
ate. Not since the famous session OF
1903 has state legislature carried SO
many employees or piled up such a
heavy expense One reason for the
big expense for employees in the 1915
session was the fact that the legisla-
ture was in session II days and many
of the employees drew SO day for
each day until sine die adjournment.
Virtually all of the employees remain
ed on the pay roll until last Saturday
night, the sixty-eighth day of the Ses-
sion. That meant $204 for each OF
these employees, while the clerks and
assistants who stayed on the Job until
Wednesday night received $216 for
their services.
Printing Expense.
Not for several weeks will the
printing expense of the legislature he
known. The session laws are yet to
be printed and the cost of printing
bills has not been computed by the
state printing plant. The session laws
will be larger than at any time since
1906 and will naturally cost moro
than in former sessions. On the other
hand the legislature established a high
water mark in the introduction of bills
and that added to the expense. Sever
al weeks ago w. G. Austin, state print
er, declared that the state printing
plant had printed 5000 more type
pages than for any previous session
since the state purchased its own
plant. In addition to the big printing
items are several hundred dollars in
travelling expenses for senate and
house members who visited state in
stitutions. 1t is believed that these
items will bring the total expense OF
the 1915 legislature to 100000.
Story by Figures.
This is the story of expense of the
legislature to date as told by figures
in the office of w. E. Davis, state au-
ditor:
Senate: Postage and telephone,
$2,O5O; mileage, $1,765.5O; per diem
members, $6,150; employees, $23,163.
House expense: Postage, $3.50;
mileage, $7,229.1O: per diem mem
bers, $1S,60O; employees, $19.s83.5O;
supplies, typewriters, incidentals, ST.
OO4.42; miscellaneous expense, $3,-
63S.34. Total expense to date, $780,
1886.
Former legislative sessions from
1903 to date have cost the state the
following sums:
In 1903, 3s6 employees, total cost.
Independent of printing and supplies,
$4,000: 1905, 153 employees, total
expense, $66,55S.67; 1907, 17S EN-
ployees, total expense, $76,50157;
1909, 1913 employees, total expense,
$4,000; 1911, 1s4 employees. total ex-
pense, $4,000; 1913. 1913 employees.
employees, expense independent trav-
cling expense and printing, $S6,633.S6-