The Beaver herald. [volume] (Beaver, O.T. [Okla.]) 1895-1923, 1920-10-21
State Questions and Initiative
Petitions to be Voted on Nov.
End, 1920.

Of State Question No. 90. Initiative Pc
tltion No. 81 The full title and text
pf the measure reads:
A Bill Entitled: IAN Act Levyinp
upon the Property OF Certain Public
I SerViee Corporations, an Annual Tax
for the Maintenance OF the Common
Schools Of this State, Providing for
the Collection and Apportionment
Thereof, as Provided in Section 12a,
Article 10, Of the State Constitution"
DE II Enacted by the People OF tho
State OF Oklahoma:
Section l. For the purpose of main.
taining the common schools OF this
Ftate for the fiscal year beginning
puly LIST next following the adoption OF
Ibis Act, and for each fiscal year there
after an annual tax is hereby levied
upon the proptrty OF every railroad
company, pipe line company, telegraph
company, and upon the property oil
every public service corporation which
Operates in more than one county in
this State; such tax 10 be equal Gas
bear as may be) to the average rate
pr tax levied upon other property in
his state for like purposes.
For the purpose of determining tho
ate of levy to be applied to the prop
trty coming under The provisions or
his Act for maintaining common
schools for any tax year, it Is hereby
made the duty of the County Clerk OK
each county in this State 10 furnish
the State Auditor, in writing, over his
signature and seal, not later than Oc-
tober lst, each year statement show
ing the maintenance Cor general pun.
pose'D tax levy for each school dis
trict in his county for such year. and
the State Auditor shall add together
the amount of such maintenance Cor
general purpose'O levy for each and
every school district in this State. and
shall divide the result by the total
number OF school districts in this
State, and the quotient shall be held
and construed to be the average tax
rate for this State for maintaining
common schools for such year; ana
the State Auditor shall, in book kept
Tor that purpose, extend the said aver.
age tax rate against all properly com.
ing under the provisions OF this Act.
md such teX is hereby made payable
20 the State Auditor in like time as
taxes upon other property for similar
purposes are payable throughout this
state; and upon failure to pay, the
.wner or owners of such property shall
he subject TO like penalties as are
now, or may hereafter be, provided by
law tor failure to pay ad valorem taxes
egularly levied in this State.
Section 2. All taxes collected under
the provision of this Act shall, as col.
lected, be paid into the State Treasury
to the credit of the common school
fund of the State, and the same shall
be apportioned and distributed in like
time and manner as other common
school funds OF the State.
Section g. Property coming under
the provisions OF this Act shall not ba
liable for the maintenance or general
purpose tax levy made by any school
district; but such property shall be
subject to taxation for all other pur.
poses, including the school district
levy for interest and sinking fund"
the same as before the adoption of
this Act.
No one has even advanced claim
that the above measure is not properly
drawn to make effective the will of tha
people of Oklahoma as expressed in
Section la, Article 10 of the State
Constitution, ratified by the people OF
Oklahoma August 5, 1913.
The enemies of Section la will fight
this measure upon the ground that
Section 12a should not be vitalized.
To advance such an argument is to-
claim that the minority and NOT tho
Majority should rule.
Section la has been before the
people IN three elections. In the gen.
eral election in 1910 this proposition
was (partly) before the people. The
Legislature had ordered II submitted
to the people for their approval or re.
lection.
BY leaving this question off OF the
regular State Question ballot and plac-
ing same under the names of cnudl.
dates upon the State ticket more than
100000 voters failed to find this ques.
hion or TO cast their votes thereon.
The proposition received l01, csc yes"
votes and 43.133 mo votes. Falling
TO receive majority OF all the votes
cast in the election" It lost.
The measure was submitted at
special election in August, 1918, re.
ceivtng $3.50 yes" votes to 3O,294
mo votes, whereupon the same be-
came part of the Constitution OF
Oklahoma
The Supreme Court held that the
section was not seif-eNecitng, but re.
quired vitalizing legislation.
Section 45, Article OF the State
Constitution reads:
"The Legislature SHALL PASS
such laws as are necessary to
make effective the provisions Of
this Constitution"
Not only was this plain mandate of
the Constitution ignored by the Leg.
State were asked to repeal Section
12a 76.093 votes were cast in favor
of such repeal and 127,525 votes were
cast against the proposed repeal.
The Legislature still refusing to
obey Section 45 of Article of the
Constitution, the measure above
shown was initiated and is now sub
mitted to the people of Oklahoma so
that by the power Of our own franchise