New Mexico state record. (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1914-19??, 1917-03-09
RUSH AT FINISH CARRIES MANY BENEFICIAL MEASURES
INTO EFFECT GOOD ROADS, AUSTRALIAN
BALLOT, AND CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT TO
SUFFRAGE ARE Prominent
Appointments or THE GOVERNOR
RECEIVE CONCURRENCE OF SENATE
LONG LIST STATE BOARD MEMBERS CONTAINS
NAMES OF MEN AND WOMEN ABLE TO
ACCOMPLISH GREAT GOOD FOR THE STATE
IN THE UpBU1LDINa OF HER INSTITUTIONS AND
ENTERPRISES


sistants and tix their pay.
A unified highway system, (as al
present rro;ccted) is maintained d
This system is limited to 10 per CEN
of the actual road mileage in the
state. wise provision when the am
cunt of roadway is considered ant
the impossibility OF making it all in
to boulevards just at present. Ar
interchange of ideas between the
state board and county commission
ers is provided. with the former
having a little the best of it in the
way of authority and administrative
power.
County commissioners may select
such main travelled roads in their
counties as they may desire for de-
the road board. The latter inves-
tieates the propositions made, and
proceeds to spend the allotted por-
tion of the states money on the
roads of different counties. The
county is supposed to raise half OF
the money for state road work, and
may do all the other road work on
its own account it may desire. In
some cases the state highway en-
gineer may proceed to build the
roads entirely at the cost Of the
state, when he finds that it is to
the interest of the state system to do
so. Maintenance costs are similar
ly divided.
To meet federal funds under the
federal road aid act, the counties
are to engage to pay one-fourth,
I the state one-fourth. and Uncle Sam
the other half
! An annual tax OF one and one.
hall mills on the dollar, which is
half {. mill higher than has been
levied for state roads before is pro-
vlded. This is covered into the
"statc highway. fund" to which is
added also one half Of the license
and fine money fromm motor ve-
hicles."
The expenditure of this money is
safeguarded with attention to the
rights of cities. counties, and Sec
tions of the state, and the counties
are authorized to collect taxes not in
end Of the work.
Legal Reform Bills
The Australian ballot law, work
mems compensation act, and semi
monthly payday law, are some of
the good bills passed. OF Importance
we are told by the legal fraternity,
though scarcely Ineligible among
the great body of layman are the
laws of a long list which Speaker
I.lewellyn inadvertently remarked
the supreme court wishes to have
passed" The state bar association
i, the sponsor for these bills, and
as they seem to be in the nature
of shortening up, and cutting
good deal of the red tape out o.
law suits, we should worry! His
tory will never record to the fnll
the amount of attention and griiling
strdy these laws were given by the
worked Judiciary committees Of
the two houses; it is to New Mex
ico's everlasting Profit that they
have been written into law.
Two new Counties
With the passage Of the Lea coun.
ty bill this week the legislature ad-
dcd tc the states list of counties
two more. making 2S Not So much
ON account of these. as for their
forbearance in not creating more, is
the third session to be praised for
its new-county record We could
have AIvarado. AguiIar, and Pyra- i
mid counties. and others if the leg
islators had shown a disposition to
trifle, but the same calm poise and
Judgment was shown as was shown |
in passing but about 7 percent of
the 700 odd (and some surely were)
bills that were presented.
The riddle still stands, why should
a Republican legislature legislate
Two admittedly democratic counties.
as Lea and De Baca county will be.
This riddle will probably never be
solved by the riddle-seeking Demo-
1nswer is given here for the benefit
,f the truly thoughtful reader:
The people Of the new counties
vantcf .her to be made. And there
you are.
Solons Show Reserve
Among the things that the legisla- I
ure did not do may be mentioned
he friiurt of the house to pass a
vi which was designed to keep the
resent legislature and county Of.
iccis III office until 1920. under the
.uise of an enactment for holding
ounty elections on odd numbered i
ears.
The house voted down the INDECENT ,
tudent bill which would have given |
ach legislative member the right,
t a total cost of $4,000 to the state,
o appoint one student to attend an a
Institution OF higher learning in the I
tate. II
Special privilege could not be