Omaha daily bee., 1919-04-28
BY P. A. BARRoWS.

| tive code law do, and what Will bt
its effect upon the state at large
This is one of the questions which
has been in the minds of the PEG
pie Of Nebraska ever since the leg
islature convened and the code BIZ
was introduced in the senate al
Senate File No. 2.
In the first place, probably nc
piece of contemplated legislation Of
the last session was more great,
misunderstood than the administra
tive code bill. This was due larg.l;
through the fact that because, i,
contained over 500 pages that PEG.
pie became afraid that it was rev.
dictionary idea that was going tc
bring havoc to state business. Enc.
mics of the bill took advantage oil
this feeling out in the state and
used it in way which led the peo.
pie who were not in a position tc
determine the real merits of the bill
to believe it was simply plan OIL
the governor to gain control of tile
state machinery and build up a pc.
litical machine.
Principle Works Here.
To any individual who is DESTROYS
of finding, out just exactly the eff
feet the new law will have or is in
tended to have, it is only necessary
to visit any big department store
in Omaha, Lincoln or any other
city of the state, and they will find
the principal of the code bill work
ing in the carrying on of the bust
ness in those institutions of trade
The code bill, or rather the new
administrative code law, is simply
tputting in effect in state business
the same principle used in success.
full business interests in carrying OF
private business. If that method is
a success in private business Of
large trade and commerce, it houlc
be just as essential and just as sue.
cessful in the carrying on of the
business of the state.
Ina short way of explanation the
administrative code law fixes re.
sponsibility and places it where
there will be no difficulty in find.
ing it. Heretofore the executive Of
the state has been largely held re.
sponsible for the poor manner ir
which business may have beer
handled while the responsibility has
been divided between boards Of
which he was only one of from
three to five members.
Consolidates Business.
The new law consolidates the bus.
mess of the state which has beer
formerly handled by boards of from
three to five or more members into
six departments known as the De.
partment of Finance, the Depart
ment of Agriculture, the Depart
1nent of Labor, the Department o.
! Trade and Commerce, the. Depart
ment of Public Welfare and the De.
partment of Public Works. The
work formerly handled by twenty
boards and commissions has beer
consolidated into these six depart
ments with an official head for each
department known as secretary
all appointed by the governor anc
to him personally held responsible
for the work of the department over
which that secretary has control.
Men of business who have here
tofore had business at the state
house with the old boards know how
difficult it has been to get hearing
before any of the boards, simply
because the state officers who have
composed those boards have hac
other business which demanded
their attention of state nature ane
many hours of valuable time to the
visitor have been lost. Under thu
administrative code man having
business demanding a hearing at the
state house can get immediate &C
ton because he will not have te
wait upon the pleasure Of boar6
which has it's members busy a
something else.
The charge that the new code Law
gives the governor the opportunity
to build up a political machine j:
lost in the fact that under the new
law there are less appointees thar
under the old law and in the face
also of the recent attempt of po
litical machine to run Nebraska pol
itics, it is not likely that any gov
ernor will care to overload himsel
with any sort of encumbrance which
the voters of the state appear te
take so much delight in mashing.
Going back to the proposition O.
the size of the code bill and Thy
feeling on the part of the people
that because of the large number O.
pages that it was a revolutionary
document it might be we'll to state
that under the law when there is &
change made in any section of {
statute, even to the change of only
one word, that it is necessary to re
print the whole section. In some
instances this took many pages, fol
instance, the whole insurance Law
I which took 100 pages, the only
change that was made was te
change the designation "the insur.
ance board" wherever it appeared
to "the department of trade and
commerce." under which the insur.
ance laws of the state will now
come.
Little New Matter.
Strictly speaking, about 80 pages
will cover all the new matter thai
was in the bill at the time it was
introduced. Of course the new laws
enacted by the last legislature will
have to be incorporated in the new
administrative code law whenever
they cover matters over which the
new departments will have control
Another charge made that as a
constitutional convention would
meet next year that matters should
stay as they are awaiting action Of
the constitutional convention, was
out Of place because the new code
does not deal with constitutional
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