The Athena press. [volume] (Athena, Umatilla County, Or.) 18??-1942, 1919-01-31
RESUME OF WORK OF
OREGON LEGISLATURE
Number of Consolidation Bills
Agreed Upon BY Joint
Committee.

Road Legislation Occupies Members--
$1o,ooo,ooo Road Bond Issue Pro.
posed-Budget Is Pruned-Would
Investigate Dairy Industry-com'
blne Of stock Buyers lllesaI--Five
Bills to Expedite Court Procedure
Would Remove Tax Exemptions.
Salem While considerable legisla.
tion of minor importance received at.
tention in each house during the sec
ond week of the session, the big con
structive measures, in which the peo.
pie Of the state at large are interested,
such as those relating to highways,
finance and consolidation of manage
ment of state institutions, were still
incubating when the legislature ad-
journed for the week end. Several
bills on these vital subjects are sched-
uled for introduction this week, but
1t will doubtless be some time before
they are passed.
The joint consolidation committee
has agreed upon several bills designed
to merge various state bureaus. They
seek to create several departments,
viz, department of labor, depart
ment of agriculture, department OF
health, a department Of state institu-
tions and buildings and possibly one
or two other departments. Passage
OF these bills would result in the mer-
ger of dozen OF more boards and
commissions.
Some, members of the joint consoli-
dation committee seem to think that
their program will not meet with very
strong opposition, but others believe
opposition will develop when the bills
are reached on the calendar, and 1t
would not be surprising II they are
held up and swamped in the conges-
tion usual during the closing days of
the session.
Road legislation is uppermost in
the minds of members in both houses,
and all concede that comprehensive
highway program should be passed at
the present session, but the trouble is
that petty jealousy, politics and per-
sonal ambition are hampering any
prompt action. The senate and house
committees are jealous of each other
and there are members in each house
who would like to go down in history
as the father of the states highways.
Road Bills Appear
A number of road bills have been
introduced, some of which have merit
Several seek to, hit the so-called paw
ing trust and permit open competition
in road construction.
While 1t is impossible to tell just
what the road construction program
will be, it seems certain that a $10,-
100000 bond issue will be provided
for, to be financed by funds derived
from an increase in the motor vehicle
tax and tax on gasoline.
Reconstruction has received slight
consideration, but thus far no definite
plan has been formulated.
During the first two weeks Of the
session so bills were introduced in the
senate and 191 in the house, and in
addition number of resolutions and
memorials have been presented. Eight
house bills were pending in the SEN
ate and % senate bills in the house.
A flood of bills to increase salaries
have appeared. So far IA counties
are reported to have offered bills to
increase salaries of county officers,
and bills are in to increase the salary
of the justices of the supreme court,
superintendent of public instruction
insurance commissioner and dairy
commissioner. According to lobby
talk more salary bills are coming.
ss42,s11 Is Cut From Budget Figures.
Z The joint ways and means commit
tee, during its first two weeks of
wrestling with the financial problems,
has tentatively allowed s2,002, ,S63.44 of
the s2,S45,176 of the budget require
ments to be put up to the law makers,
having Topped off sS42,S11.56 so far.
These slashes leave only little more
than s4o0, 900 more to be cut off to
meet the provisions of the per cent
limitation amendment and there is
every indication that the committee
will make good on this task
The main reduction made has been
the looping off of the s6SO,000 which
the industrial accident commission es-
timated would be its share for state
aid during the next two years.
The next heaviest reduction is that
Of the state fair, $4,000 being pruned
from the estimates of that institution.
The Normal Is shaved Off s24.441.E to