Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1918-12-23
LEGISLATION
GOVERNING new
BILLS NEEDED
Huge Amount of Unnecessary
Work Handled in LegisIa-
ture Each Session; Last
Days Always Crowded.
By p. A. BARROWS.

i-iHSoiI. DSN. @L.-N OpCSldlJ-1 lie
agitation started for a new method
of introducing bills in the legislature
with the view of keeping down the
number, appears to be meeting with
great deal of encouragement and
letters from members of the next
session indicate that there may be
something done.
However, this is not a new condi
ton. For the past several sessions
members have come to Lincoln with
a determination to do something to
prevent the INTRODUCED, n of so many
bills, but when the time comes to
adopt some method, they have gen
orally contracted heavy infliction
of cold feet and nothing has ever
come of it.
That the system used is obsolete
end out OF date, no one attempts to
ceny. Four years ago the legisla
ture started the state legislative ref
erence bureau along the line of try
ing to discover what other states
were doing.
The bureau spent considerable
time and money in getting irtorma-
ton and in printing its report, but
that was just about as far as it got.
The legislature which ordered the
investfga ON was encountered with
1905 bills that session. The in
vestigation proved such a success
in discovering means to cut down
the number that more bills than ever
before, were introduced, l,l54.
Endurance Records.
The man who comes to the legis-
lature ought to be something of
patriot, when it comes to introduc-
ton of bills. Some members appear
to have a mania to exceed the speed
limit and the number of bills intro
duced by some members is simply
wonderful. As an indication of this
certain senator from Douglas
county in the last session introduced
in the senate SO bills, of which ten
were passed. Another senator on the
same delegation introduced p bills
of which none were passed. A sena-
tor from Dawes county introduced
IS bills of which only one passed. A
senator from Howard county intro
duced two bills and half of them
passed. Senator Kohl introduced no
bills and had 100 per cent record.
Record From Lancaster.
In the house representative from
Lancaster county introduced rs bills
while representative from Douglas
county introduced "a bills and sew
cral others did nearly as well. A
large number of these bills could
Just as we'll have been consolidated
with others and saved the expense
of printing and much time wasted IN
consideration.
Going back to he 1913 legsla-
ture, one senator introduced As bills
and another So and another SO.
While as far as, the number of bills
was concerned the senate that ses-
sion brok. the record, there being
457 bills introduced in that body
alone, these three men introduced
100 of them, nearly one-fourth OF
the/ entire number. In the house
that session there were SS9 bills in
troduced. The 1918 session made a
record, introducing l,346 bills. OF
this large number just 200 became
laws, los from the house and ~
from the senate. These included,
appropriation bills and other bills
necessary to running the legislature
aid many of them Of such little I'M
portance that they went through
with no opposition.
Rush at Close.
With a multiplicity of bills It
simply means that in the 'hurry-up'
DAYS of the closing OF the session,
bills are rushed through with little
consideration. For Instance, after
the sitting committee of the senate
had been appointed in the 1917 SEES
sion. Ell bills were considered in
the senate on third reading. Some
passed and some did not, but most
of them did. Of this number Just
exactly 50 were considered on the
18th day and every one of them
passed. Of course they had been
considered in committee of the
whole and recommended lol pas
sage, but nobody appeared to be
especially interested, except to
grind out as many as possible and
then, adjourn and go LONE.
Sitting Committee Power.
The large number introduced
simply means but one thing. and
that is little consider alton of the
merits of a bill if it is left until the
closing days of the session. when
sitting committee and conference
committee play vital part in legis-
lation.
The solution of the matter appears
to be that the different committees
of both houses should meet jointly
and consider bills IN similar sub
iects and consolidate ikem into one
bill, thus saving the cost OF print
sing half a dozen when one could pro-
err the subject as well. Another
remedy might be for the legislature
TO take a recess of two weeks after
the 2O-day limit for introduction OF
bills and let the committees get
them in shape and Wien the recess
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