Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1915-08-11
SUM TER's BILL
IN LEGISLATURE
BADLY TANGLED

Several members of the Americas
delegation in Atlanta this week lin the
interest, pro and con, of the bill which
seeks to abolish the Office Of eountz
treasurer of Sumter, came home this
morning. The term "a comedy os
errors may aptly be applied to the
Dill situation, as it proved, in the end.
mixed up affair with its passage in
both houses and later the attempt to
get through substitute bill for ths
original.
Boiled down, the situation at mr.
ent seems that the original bill. seek
ing to abolish the office of treasurer
OF Sumter entirely, has passed both
houses of the general assembly and is
now up to Governor Harris, to be sign
| Va anu ldW, Ut turned down.
Just when the Governor will act /,
the premises is, of course, unknown.
but probably at an early date.
A bill to abolish the office of treas
urer of Sumter county was introducs5
in the house, referred to the nroper
committee and reported back to he
passed 1t was passed by the house
and sent to the senate where an am
endment was put on and the bill came
back to the house.
The Sumter delegation agreed to tbe
amendment and the bill then had ira
final legislative action. Subsequently
the senate sent resolution to fc
house asking that house bill of a
certain number be sent back to the
senate, without specifying what for.
Unanimous consent was given and
the bill went back.
Yesterday the bill came back to the
house-the same bill already passed
by both houses with the approved SEN
ate amendment-witR senate substi-
tute for the whole. 1t was shown that
the substitute was an enirely new bill.
which had never been read to the
house or to the senate, and providing
entirely different thing from the
original bill.
Where the original bill provided that
the office of county treasurer should
be abolished, the late substitute pro-
vided that the treasurer should be pail
salary of $500 year Under the old
system, which the bill sought to aboI-
ish, the treasurer draws fees amount
ing to about $4,000 year.
The speaker ruled that the bill, af-
ter the senate amendment had been
agreed to by the house, was in custody
of the house for transmission to the
governor for his signature, which
was the only remaining act 10 make il
law and had therefore gone beyond
legislative action, He explained tha:
the situation presented by the las1
action of the senate, that of adopting
a substitute after the completed action
ON the original bill, raised an intricate
legal question, and he would rule the
final action of the senate out of order.
To get action on this he put to
vote of the house the question OF
whether after passage of a bill am
ended, by both houses of the legislature
it could be recalled by the senate and
acted on by substitute. The house
voted no.
The chair then put to vote the prop
osition that 1T is the sense of this
house that this bill, as passed with tbs
senate amendment, be signed by the
officers of the house and transmitted
to the governor for his signature" The
house voted yes.
He then put to vote of the house
the proposition that the senate BE-
notified by messenger that the chair.
by direction, had ruled it's substitute
out of order, held that the bill is is
the custody of the house, and that the
senate be requested to direct its Off
GERS to sign the bill as passed prior to
the substitute, for transmission to the
governor.