Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1917-08-03
IT, s. TO FIGHT EXEMPTION CLALlASG
EQUALIZATION REPEAL
DOWNED BY COMMITTEE
Opponents of Change in Tax
Law Score Is to 10
Victory

The friends Of tax equalization. who
are fighting the efforts to repeal the
law, won a hands-down victory in gen.
eral judiciary committee No. of the
house Of representatives Wednesday aft
ernoon, when by vote of is to 10 they
passed a motion to report unfavorably
the bill by Representatives Bale, Of
Floyd, and Barrett, of Whitfield, to re-
peal the equalization law.
This is the same bill that brought on
a sharp clash in the house Wednesday
morning, and the same that was up be-
fore the same committee Tuesday after
noon.
The action of the committee Wednes.
day afternoon, which will stand as it's
final action, seems to have put an end
to the last of the bills to repeal the
equalization law, and the chances for
repeal to come to vote in the house
at this session, or even to get a place
on the calendar, are practically nil.
Several bills to repeal the tax equal
ization law were introduced at the be-
ginning of the session. Being tax meas
ures, they properly belonged in the ways
band means committee, and to that COM
mittee they were referred by Speaker
Holder. Very soon it developed that the
ways and means committee were prac-
tically a unit against the bills, and the
repeal faction Immediately began to de-
wise ways and means of getting one or
more of the bills away from this com.
mittee and sending them to other COM
mittees which might report them favor
ably.
ONE GETS AWAY.
Representative Tramnell, of Harris
author Of one Of the bills, caught the
opponents of repeal off their guard in
the house one day and got his bill with
drawn from the ways and means COM
mittee and re-committed to general
agriculture No. 1. But day or so later
this committee sent back the bill with
a recommendation that 1T be returned
to the ways and means committee,
where ii belonged.
Meanwhile, Representative Bale had
managed in some manner, which no
very clearly, to get the bill, introduced
by him and Representative Barrett,
withdrawn from the ways and means
committee and sent to general judiciary
No l.
Tuesday afternoon this committee held
a meeting. The opponents of repeal did
not know the Bale bill was in the hands
Of the committee. There was bill be-
fore the committee by Representative
Pace, Of Sumter, dealing with another
matter. which he wanted the commit
tee to act on. The attendance was
very slim. A motion was made TO make
ten members a quorum. Representative
Davidson, Of Putnam, an opponent of
repeating the equalization law, agreed
to the motion with the understanding
that nothing would be acted on but the
bill of Mr. Pace. He then left the
meeting.
After he and other anti-repeal mem
bers had gone, the Bale bill was
brought up, and by vote of six to four
the ten members present passed a mo-
ton to recommend that the bill do pass.
After the meeting. Representative An
derson. of Jenkins, a member of the
committee, and a leading advocate of
repeal, went to the Kimball house and
began to Josh" some anti-repeal mem
oers OF the committee on the way the
repealites had put it over"
ANOTHER MEETING.
Immediately the anti-repeal members
Of the committee got busy and petition
ed Representative ELLIS, OF Tiff chair
man of general judiciary No. l, to call
a meeting at o'clock Wednesday morn
ing, which he did. About twenty men,
oers OF the committee were present. A
motion was made to reconsider the &C
ton OF the committee, taken Tuesday
afternoon, in reporting the bill favor
AMY. representative Anderson manag-
ed to prolong the discussion of the mo-
ton until the house met at o'clock
when the committee was obliged to ad-
journ
Chairman Ellis submitted to the house
Wednesday morning a report of the bills
reported favorably by the committee,
but he left out the tax repeal bill, on the
ground that the motion to reconsider
was still pending. Representative An
derson and others tried to force the bill
out Of the committee, but they failed.
Then the committee held another
meeting Wednesday afternoon again
with about twenty members present The
anti-repeal forces were evidently in the
majority. Seven Of them, however, had
other important committee meetings
they wanted to attend, and asked unani-
nous consent to cast their votes against
the tax repeal bill and leave the meeting
The consent was granted. After they
were gone, Representative Anderson
moved to reconsider the action of the
committee in granting unanimous consent
Representative Davidson took the floor
and held it until another anti-repeal
member of the committee could go and
round up the seven absentees. When
they returned, the committee passed a
motion to report the bill with a recon-
mendation that II do not pass.
Thus ended one of the most interest
ing mAneuvers that has occurred in the
legislature in several years.