Albuquerque morning journal., 1916-11-02
FIREMEN' s LOSS
NOT CHARCEABLE
To --CLANCY
Attorney General Issues State
ment, Saying He Has Been
Told of Attempt to Injure
Him.

Atty. Gen. Frank W CLANCY sent
the following statement TO the Morn
ing Journal
Il have been Informed tnat an at
tempt has been made 10 dlscredlt me
with the firemcn throughout the state
and to induce them to vote against me
at the approaching election, upon the
alleged ground that ON account OF
some decision Of mine the fire corn
panies have been deprived OF some
thing like $4,000 am at loss TO
understand what can be the tounda-
tion OF this statement unless il is as
hereinafter indicated
In 1909, the legislature by an act
which Is published ah Chapter 1876 OF
the laws Of that year, made an appro-
priation Of $4,000 year to be paid
to the New Mexico Association OF
Firemen from money collected from
insurance companies, said sum to be
added to the benefit fund Of said as
soCiation for disabled firemen, their
widows and orphans. 1t will be seen
that this appropriation to that asso-
citation was for charitable and benev-
olent purposes. In 1910 the people of
der which we have organized a state
government, and by Section 81 of
Article " of that constitution, the
people of the state prohibited the
making of any appropriation for char
table. educational or other beneVo-
lent purposes to any corporation not
under the absolute control of the
state This constitutional prohibition
necessarily put an end to the payment
of money to the New Mexico Associa-
ton Of Firemen. and in July, 1872,
in letter written togthe state corpo'
ration commission, / called attention
to this constitutional provision 1t isl
possible that this is the basis for the
report above mentioned.
Expedited Fircmcn's suits.
Tn the same act Of 1909 specific
appropriations were made of money
to be paid to seventeen different fire
and In my letter of July, /
1912, / called attention to the fact
that ii could not be said Of the money I
paid to the various fire departments |
that the constitutional prohibition was |
applicable on the face of the statute !
Later two suits were brought in |
the district court OF Santa Fe by the !
firemen to Try to compel the payment /
of the appropriation to the New Mex |
leo Association of Firemen and of the /
various appropriations TO the differ /
cnt fire departments. ] did what / (
could to expedite the hearing of these /
cases and the counsel for the New /
Mexico Association OF Firemen after F.!
of the constitutional /
prohibition, abandoned that case, but
rs to the other case, favorable deci- !
sion having been reuched In the dis
trict court, ! took an appeal to tho /
supreme court so that there might be /
a final and definite adjudication. The |
had attempted, In the APP
bill of 1912, TO transfer TO I
The salary fund all of the money from |
which these firomens' appropriations /
were to be paid, and the supreme /
court correctly held that this attempt |
ln the part of the Legislature was in !
valid because prohibited by another |
'lause Of the constitution which de /
.lares, in effect, that in an appropria-
ion bill general legislation can not |
be included could not and did not
make any argument to the supreme |
'ourt to support that legislation,
which the court declared to pe invalid,
md the various fire departments have
ince been receiving the amounts of
heir appropriations paid from money
from the insurance compan-
as, and by Chapter 90 Of the laws Of
9l5 number of new fire depart !
nents were added to the earlier list
There has been undoubtedly "a loss
o the New Mexico Association of
'iremen of money which it had re-
eived under the territorial govern
nent but that loss is due to the pro-
lihition in the constitution above re-
erred to, and not to any action of
nine.
The decision of the supreme court
,il be found in the case Of state vs..
argent, in Vol IS Of the New Mexico
epOrts at page 1871