Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-08-13
PROPAGANDA
AGAINST CODE
BILL FAILURE
New Attaks on State Admins.
tration Proven RoorbaCk
by Careful Reading
of Bills.
(From a Staff Correspondent

Lincoln, Aug. i2.-The demo-
cratic propaganda committee, which
had for its object the knocking out
of the new code law by an appeal
to the people through the referen-
dunn, and which tie court decided
was not conducted according to law.
is still active and through various
sources at its command is endeavor-
ing to convince the people that the
code law is all wrong.
The latest appears in an Omaha
paper of democratic persua sion,
which under Lincoln date line
makes the charge that there is no
appropriation to pay employees
working under the code law, it
charges that the legislature when it
appropriated the "unexpended bal
ances under the old law for the use
of the departments under the code.
did an unconstitutional act and calls
attention to section p Of the constI-
tuition, which reads as follows:
No money shall be drawn from
the treasury except in pursuance OF
a specific appropriation made by
law and no money shall be diverted
from any appropriation made for
any purpose or taken from any fund
whatever either by joint or separ
ate resolution of the legislature"
Provided BY Legislature.
The weakness of the contention
Of the article that a specific appro-
priatlon must be made and that no
can be diverted comes in the
fact that the appropriation was
made for the purpose of carrying OIL
these departments and will still be
used to carry on the departments.
The departments are still working
but have been gained under the
code and under different names, but
they are still performing the work
for which the appropriations were
made by the legislature.
The appropriation bill which COW
cred the matter states that all un-
expended balances of funds herein |
for any office, depart
nent or building or improvement,
position, clerical hire. office expense
n other purpose, when Senate File
No. 2 (the code bilD becomes effec-
tive, are hereby appropriated to the
departments which. under
Senate File No. 2. will administer or
discharge the duties and functions
now administered or discharged by
the officers or employees for which
appropriations were made by this
act"
The voting of unexpended bal
ances of department for the use
IF that department has always been
done by the legislature. and in the
voting of the unexpended balances
Of the departments at the time the
new code went into effect, to the
Use of the same department, reor-
yanized under the code law, is con-
,titutional and something not at all
new
Start Another Roorback.
The opposition to the new code
sprung another roorback on the ad-
the other day through
me of it's sources of publicity, to
the effect that the governor and the
aw enforcement department and
state officers we're purchasing mile
age books and in many instances,
in the case of the gov
ernor and the law enforcement de-
7artment, was keeping no record OF
the use made by the holders.
The law says that any department
using mileage books shall keep a
record showing the number of the
book, name of the person using the
same, date of purchase, points be-
tween which mileage is used and
The distance actually travelled.
This is being done in each depart
nent and in the department of law
a very complete rec
ord is kept open to inspection to
the public at all times as is the
case in all departments. The
charge of use of mileage books
without keeping record Of the
same according to law is not cor
-ect and the records so disclose.